10 minutes With Lotachukwu

When you hear the name Kiki who do you think of? I remember Jenifa’s diary. The hilarious show produced by Funke Akindele. After watching the movies, I had to get in on the series and my favorite character apart from Jenifa of course is Kiki.

Kiki reminds me of my friend Damilola who happens to be the voice of reason. Her character on the show was very refreshing until she got upset at Jenifa for preventing her from having an abortion. Funny enough, she’s the one who always tries to keep Jenifa out of trouble.

Lota is a refreshing face in the Nollywood movie industry. She makes watching Nollywood movies easy. The way she plays her role in the movies she stars in is exhilarating!

Another movie Kiki(Lota) played in that was so enlivening to watch is “Displaced.” The romance scenes were very steamy, I had to send her a message to “stop kissing that boy.”

I love Lota for a lot of reasons, but my favorite reason is for her cooking.

When Lota first started posting food pictures on her Instagram’s page, I said to myself “Another celebrity wanting to be a Chef sha.” But I was proved wrong. Lota stays close to her Nigerian roots when it comes to cooking, she takes her craft quite seriously, she is dedicated and just pushes herself to cook right. And I really love the simplicity of her pictures. All these qualities endeared me to Lota.

Abacha….

grilled fish, plantain, chicken wings, tiger prawns and corn….

Another thing I love about Lota is her show “Lota Takes.” She does this thing where she visits the houses of celebrities and cooks whatever they have in their pantry. How creative is that?

10minutes with Lota felt like I was talking to my soul sister. I hopelessly love her…Enjoy :

Nlc: You’re an actor in the Nigerian film industry. Where are you from in Nigeria?
Lota: “I am an Igbo girl, from Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu state.”

Nlc: How do you balance being an actor and a foodie?
Lota: “It is really not a tea party affair balancing my position as an actor and a foodie. It takes a great deal of commitment and discipline to keep up with what I do. I love to act, and at the same time, I love to deal a lot with food. I cannot abandon one for the other because I am passionate about both. I just make sure they both work out despite how tough it may be for me.”

Nlc: How did you get your break into the movie industry?
Lota: “From a tender age, I always wanted to act. Years down the line, I also enrolled at the Royal Arts Academy where my acting skills were sharpened. My first movie feature, however, was in Studio 113 which was produced by Lancelot Odua Imasuen. Ever since, I’ve not looked back.”

Nlc: How do you impact the community around you with your work?
Lota: “As an actor, I and several others in the business of moviemaking have remained the cynosure of all eyes, and a lot is expected from us by members of the society. As an individual, I have chosen to lay good examples with my roles; proper interpretation of it, I believe, will educate the vast majority of the society. As a lady, many girls out there are looking up to someone like Kiki as a role model, and the worst I can do is to fail them.”

Nlc: How did you find out your passion was movie and food?
Lota: “When I was in secondary school, I discovered that I could actually act, and my parents gave their support. I got lots of encouragement from people because they saw that I had the potential to act. Also, I like food; I love to cook, and the need to own a food show was born out of my love for food.”

Nlc: As an actor where do you see yourself in the future?
Lota: “I see myself on a higher pedestal in the very near future. I hope to have more movies to my credit, and get recognition for my effort. Overall, I want to learn more, be a better person and be a better actor. Perhaps, one day, I will also producer my own movie.”

Nlc: Your Instagram feed is filled with beautiful pictures of you and your food photography. What is one thing you want us to know about kicking off your career and humble beginnings?

/boli, turkey and goat meat kebab. Pepper sauce and palm oil….

Lota: “I am the last kid of the house and like my older siblings, I got support from my parents as regards what I wanted for myself in the future. Although they gave their support, they were insistent in me going to the university, which I do not think was a bad idea. While I was in the university, I contested for the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria (MBGN), in 2011. Thereafter, I went into acting fully, and I got my first role in Lancelot Odua Imasuen’s Studio 113.

Nlc: What advice will you give to me and others who are pursuing their passion; mine being food?

Lota: “Firstly, I think it is necessary to ask yourself why you want to pursue that passion. That way, it makes it possible to thrive in such area as food. Read books on food, watch food shows. With this, you can tell the health benefit of some foods, when to or not to eat certain foods, and counsel people on what they consume. We also get to learn about foods of other cultures, and this makes us versatile in the area of food production and other food related activities.”

Lota, I have to say: If loving you is wrong; girl we will keep loving you!

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