Ageless beauty and veteran actress, Clarion Chukwurah took a break from acting to tour three countries following her position as a special UN peace ambassador. The veteran actress, producer, director, philanthropist and mother of Clarence Peters in this interview shared light on her humanitarian project, UN peace envoy award, childhood and life after 50. Excerpts…

You are regarded as one of Nollywood pioneers. How does that make you feel?

I feel honoured to be one of the pioneers of a good thing, an industry that is a blessing to Nigeria throughout the world. I am glad to be one of those that persevered and never gave up. I am also honoured that the grace of God has been with me with the support of my fans and that of my family. 35years in the industry, I am still relevant, in fact an authority in the Nigerian acting industry, the film industry and the arts as a whole in Africa.

How did it all start?

It began when I was a child. As far back as when I was five years old, when my father had the habit of taking us to the Nigerian Television house in Victoria Island which later became NTA.  We go there to watch the Art Alade Show recorded live. All those shows were recorded live with live audiences’ way back then. We used to be taken to the cinema too.  I was struck quite early by Michael Jackson’s shows and Elizabeth Taylor on the movie, Cleopatra, that she starred in. I had all that forming in my mind. By the time I was six, I had my father buy me the posters of Michael Jackson to use as wall paper in my room. I had a very exciting childhood. I was exposed to entertainment deliberately by my father.

So when did you actually started acting?

I started acting from my primary school, All Saints Primary School, Montgomery, and I played Elizabeth the mother of John the Baptist.  In my high school, Queen of Our Rosary School Onitsha, I played Mary Magdalene.  This was when I was between ten and fourteen years. Then I joined Odu Themes, the Prof. Bode Sowande’s theatre group in the University of Ibadan from late 1979. From there to NTV Ibadan, then to my first family series ‘Bello’s Way’ in the University of Ibadan Performing Company, then to Drama school and then I starred in ‘Mirror in the Sun’ and the rest of course is history. When I was in drama school, I did ‘Money Power’ which was my first film and this won me my first award in 1984. I was the first Nigerian actress to win Best Actress at the All African Film Festival at Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso for African films that spanned the decade of ‘74-84’. Since then, I have won several awards, too numerous to mention.

‘Mirror in the Sun’ brought you to limelight. What was it like being part of the cast?

‘Mirror in the Sun’ was great. I was 19-21 years old during ‘Mirror in the Sun.’ It was an experience out of Hollywood television movie. It is an experience that I am still waiting for someone to repeat, not just technically but artistically and socially.  These three came together and it was about the art. It was not a competition like today. It was about showcasing your art and horning the edges of your skill and craft and learning to get better. It was not about what you were wearing or how pretty you are.

In what ways can such professionalism be brought back to Nollywood?

Recently, the Federal Government sponsored a distribution network for Nollywood and was launched by G Media, I believe with a couple of other partners who are in this business for quality and progress to evolve a commerce-driven qualitative industry that can compete in the foreign market. I am looking forward to a separation of the wheat from the chaff. We also have the Mahmood Ali-Balogun led Copyright project for Nollywood that will see royalties being paid to actors and actress for their work which we have been agitating for, so we can have actors making money. Then of course, the audience will be able to tell the difference because professionals will come back to make movies and they will do the right thing. Once it is successful, others will come on board.  That is the next phase of Nollywood.

Can you elaborate on the clashes between you and Ibinabo Fiberisima?

The Ibinabo Fiberisima issue was made unnecessarily into a personality clash which I think was targeted at embarrassing me to make me withdraw my intention to run for the presidency of the Actors Guild of Nigeria. I saw the resistance to change that is necessary to come into the Actors Guild of Nigeria and over the entirety of leadership. Reducing the whole thing to such a petty level was because the people at the helm of affairs supporting Ibinabo and part of her group were afraid of my pedigree and personality and they sort to embarrass me to make me withdraw but that is not what made me to withdraw. What made me withdraw was that I saw how petty the whole thing had become and the desperation of their resistance. That means these people know they are done as far as the craft is concerned and this is the only thing they have to hold on to. So it is time that will fade them out with the new changes coming into the industry. Like I said, the wheat will be separated from the chaff so that the industry and Nollywood can move forward.

For sometime you were off the radar in terms of acting in Nollywood movies. Does it have to do with things going on in Nollywood?

I left for two years because a lot of things have gone wrong. The last two movies I worked on before I stepped away, I noticed that the person who called himself the director could not speak to the actress. I was troubled and kept wondering ‘is this how far the industry has fallen? As I was saying; ‘No this is wrong and I am done with this’, the United Nations Peace Corps appointed me the United Nations International Peace Envoy.  This took me to Kenya.  The UN award was given to me for my work and initiative – the Clarion Chukwura Initiative International that took me away for two years for humanitarian works.

Let’s talk about your humanitarian works. How did it start?

Clarion Chukwura Initiative International started in 1999. We are 15 years old this year. We started with young people who were the youth wing of my church, Redeemed Christian Church of God, Kings Court Parish at the Airport Hotel. The project was to assist to re-orient them because they were going in the wrong direction. So we did a seminar on the educational rights abuses with JAMB and lecturers blackmailing students to pay rather than teaching. We did that in conjunction with the New Jazz 38 supporting us with the venue. We also had seminars on HIV and youths in prostitutions.  We had youth in agriculture with the Lagos State Government. We got support from Mobil. That was how we started.  Thereafter, we started the orphanage support with the Arrows of God Orphanage. Over the years, we have supported 16 other orphanages and three riverine communities in Ondo State.  We have done training programmes in association with Fast Training Services, Wembley, UK.  We had the VVF project for about three years. And this year, the Clarion Chukwura Initiative International project will have its end of year charity entertainment show where we will have orphans participate.

Being an actress, what inspired you to start all these projects?

I have always been like that. I lost my father early when I was just eleven years old. I learnt what it means to have to go from up to down. Our home then was home for lots of relations.  They always came for one help or the other.  I have always been one that even from my days in ‘Mirror in the Sun’, a lot of young people came to my home for assistance. So I have always been like that.  I love to reach out to people, it gives me joy.  Even my biological kids are also like that. They grew up to become like me in terms of philanthropy.  For instance, the bulk of the finances for our projects came from my pocket and recently, from Capital Dreams Pictures Limited which belongs to my son, Clarence Peters.

In your career, what can you say is the highest point you have attained?

Over time, I do hit ceilings. I go back and reinvent myself, I come back and I hit another ceiling. That is how I do it. I have gotten uncountable awards that I can’t just mention. I will just give you a list of some of them.  I was away for some time from the industry and when I came back, I won the Best Actress for the 2014 AMMA award. Some people say that particular award was overdue.

You clocked 50 years in July. How does it feel celebrating your golden age?

For my 50th birthday, I wanted to go away to internalize and re-organise my priority and go in a different direction for life after 50. So I will not be doing a lot of acting anymore. For Nollywood, I will be doing more of directing and producing. Then, of course, I will be part of projects that will outlive me. That will impart seriously on this country and the younger generation. I will be part of projects that will help in nation building. I will do more of being a part of moving this nation forward in the area that I am most passionate about, which is social development.

In this era of entertainers and Nollywood actors coming out for political positions, are we expecting you to also come out?

You see, I do not believe you need to be a politician to move a nation forward. Politics right now in Nigeria is synonymous with robbing the people. One has to be careful of losing credibility.

Do you think players in the entertainment industry who want to contest for political positions in 2015 can contribute to nation building?

They know what they are planning to contribute. Each person has their own projections. They have their own reasons; I cannot speak for any of them. And neither will I condemn anyone’s agenda.

If any of them asks you to campaign or support them what would be your reaction?

I cannot support anyone because I have not seen any tangible thing prior to going into politics what they have done. I need to see what they have done that could possibly compel me to render my support.  I have not seen anything that you have done or part of anything that is selfless and you ask me to come and support you? No, I cannot do that.  A lot of people go into politics simply because that is where the money is. In as much as I cannot condemn anyone’s initiative, that does not mean I do not have my reservations about their motives.

How do you feel being the mother of a son, Clarence Peters, a star in the entertainment industry like yourself?

First and foremost, I give God the glory. Secondly, I believe it is a proof to people that I am not a fluke; that my talent and art is ingrained and it is not something that is fake. I mean, if you don’t have it or if you were not born with it, you cannot be motivated to start acting at the age of five. So God has vindicated me and enlarged my coast and He has said yes to my dream of breeding an art family and a dynasty in the arts.

When you got pregnant with Clarence as a young girl, did it ever occur to you to go for an abortion?

I was in the university when I got pregnant with Clarence. My friends wanted me to abort it. I remember telling my friend, Ebunoluwa Jakande; she said we should go and tell Kongi, that is Prof. Wole Soyinka. When my friend told him about the pregnancy, he said ‘Oh really? Fantastic!’ He just opened a bottle of choice Champagne, Chauvet 1959; I will never forget. Then he asked me what I wanted to do and I said I would like to keep it. My friends wanted me to abort but I knew precisely what I wanted. This is because when my father was on his death bed, he said he was going to come back to me. That is why everyone in the family calls Clarence, Daddy.  When people say Clarence was a mistake, I tend to look at them and smile because I had three different opportunities to abort the pregnancy that other people were going to pay for. I had a deep seated reason to want to keep the child because the death of my father hurt me so bad. The thought that this could be my father coming back to me it was greater than any other thing.

Can you tell us about your relationship with Shina Peters and being pregnant for him?

No please! I have no comment. Sir Shina Peters is a married man, so nothing to talk about.

You still look very beautiful and I am sure men are flocking around you all the time. Who is the new man in your life now?

Of course I have secret and open admirers but that is my private life. I have thousands of secret admirers and may not be able to count them. There is no special person.

At 50, you still dress glamorous. What informs your style?

What inform my fashion sense are first and foremost comfort, self-confidence and looking good.  I have to feel confident when I step out. To feel confident, I have to feel comfortable in what I’m wearing and then of course I have to look good. So, when I look at myself in the mirror, there is a deep sense of satisfaction in how I look.

What do you think should be the dress sense of a woman after 50?

I think you are as old as you feel. So your dress sense should be based on how old you feel.  If you are 40 years old looking 60 years, then you will be wearing kaftans and boubous. But if at the age of 50 you are looking like a 35 year old, then you wear what 35-year-olds wear. That is just how I feel about it.

What is your style like?

I like fitted clothes. I am a busty person and I have a shapely figure. I only feel that I look good when my curves are accentuated.

What kinds of clothes do you like wearing?

I like pants, jackets dresses and suits.

What kind of shoes do you like?

I do not like wearing anything that is less than five inches high.

And watches?

For my wrist watches, I do Aldo. I like platinum watches and gold.

What of Perfumes?

I am a Gucci person and Kenzo perfumes.  And Blue water for my toiletries