Ifeanyi Dike (Jnr.), a medical doctor by training, is popularly known as ‘Titan’ (the character he played in Tinsel). The talented young man, who also loves writing and acting, recently shot his first film after leaving Tinsel. Special Correspondent, HENRY ODUAH, caught up with him recently and he spoke on his seeming absence from the screen.
When did you begin acting?
I began acting in 2012. I was just rounding off medical school. I had some periods to wait a bit and I just decided to take up acting because it’s something I’ve always wanted to do.
How did you cope combining acting and your studies?
There was no combining. It was a very difficult thing to do. I was lucky at times to be able to get some space off my studies and do some acting. But yeah, it was a very difficult thing and it still is very difficult because these two professions are very ‘loyal professions’ – each takes full dedication of one’s life. That said, I’m managing to push through.
Did you receive any special favour from your lecturers?
No, they didn’t. A lot of them did not know which was good for me because the thing about doctors is that they barely have the time to watch any TV. So it was a good thing for me that they didn’t really watch. Many of them didn’t watch and the ones who knew were indifferent about it. They were either like “Oh! Okay, that’s good; keep it up!” or they were like “Hope it doesn’t affect your studies.”
The most important for them was that they didn’t want it to affect my studies. So that’s it. There was no favouritism and there was no victimisation. It was just what it was.
What was your parents’ reaction to your choice of combining both acting and being in medical school?
My parents are super-supportive. They say yes to everything that I want to do, as long as they see its benefits. They always tell me to know the consequences of my actions and act accordingly. So they are very supportive of my medical career as well as my acting career.
Are you done acting?
I haven’t left acting. It’s just that this year I’m concentrating on my medical housemanship. So I haven’t had the time to do any acting. For now, I would like to concentrate on this because being a doctor is a serious thing and so I’m taking time out to concentrate on that for this whole year. After my house job, I will decide what I want to do next.
Are you nursing any plan to return to the big screen?
This is not a decision that I’ve made completely. I do however love acting so dearly. And I also love medicine. It gets a little difficult sometimes and very intense because you are dealing with lives. But I do love it still. I haven’t entirely decided. But I’d like to take some time off to do some acting after my housemanship before I make my necessary next steps.
What about Tinsel?
I have been off Tinsel for a while, just because I have been doing my housemanship, which is for a year; and after that, who knows what lies ahead?
A word for your fans who probably must have missed you on the screen.
I feel horrible. I’ve missed everyone as well. I’ve been doing some other stuff like MTV Sugar, Ebony Life Housewives, and I’ve also shot my first film, which will be out in a couple of months. So they can follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and see what I’ve been up to.
They can also log on to my website, that’s www.ifeanyidikejr.com. There they can see what is going on with me and my upcoming projects.