Popular actor, Saheed Balogun, may have taken a cue from the saying, ‘Once beaten, twice shy.’ The thespian, whose marriage to Fathia Balogun fell apart some years ago, seems to have become more wary of the damage the media could do to a celebrity.
Balogun, in a chat with our correspondent, said he now keeps his children and private life away from the public because he is much older and wiser.
He stated, “When you are much older, you have to look at what failed you the other time. I am not younger and I have seen it all. At my age now, I understand the dos and don’ts.”
While insisting that he has no regrets in life, the actor urged his colleagues to always avail themselves of the services of image makers and good lawyers, as it is necessary in their kind of profession.
“I travelled to Germany to shoot a movie and when they clicked my name, the only things they saw were on my marriage. The first question they asked was, ‘is this how journalists celebrate you in Africa?’ The media reports affected me in a way, but I give thanks to God that I am here today and I am still a friend of the media. Everything to me might be beautiful, but my manager can see what I cannot and they need us too to put food on their table. Social media can make or mar you, depending on how your PR manager uses it,” he said.
Balogun calls himself a lucky boy simply because he has turned 50 years when Rivers, Kwara and Lagos States, which are all special to him, are celebrating 50 years.
He also bemoaned the increasing death rate of actors, saying it had become important for stakeholders in the industry to consider having comprehensive health insurance policy.
He also carpeted those in government for failing to do their bit in protecting the industry. “If the House of Rep had passed good laws on piracy and we make good money, we would be able to take care of our health better. If I am making little money and there are school feels to pay, how do I take care of my health? People who have refused to pass laws on piracy are the ones killing us because we are not making money. I did a movie, spent millions of naira and I made nothing. It was pirated before it came out. I spent almost N40 million,” he said.
