With long years behind him and countless flicks to his credit, smooth-talking actor, Yomi Fash-Lanso can be described as a veteran in the world of make-believe. Fash-Lanso is not only a household name in the Nigerian film industry, his trade has taken him to places where many of his contemporaries can only imagine. KAYODE ALFRED engaged the actor in a conversation and he went down memory lane, narrating his journey into Nollywood, an industry that has raised him to a height that would be the envy of many.
It is almost a decade since Yomi Fash-Lanso came into full consciousness of movie lovers. That was on account of his role in Jide Kosoko’s film, Omolade. His dream to become an accomplished actor began as a teenager, but that remained firmly in the realm of a dream until he met the late movie director and actor, Lekan Oladipupo, popularly known in the movie world as Lekinson.
Without Lekinson’s tutelage, Fash-Lanso, perhaps, might have just been another ordinary Nigerian struggling somewhere to make ends meet. He recalled with infectious nostalgia how he embraced theatre through the efforts of Lekinson “after years of tutorials in acting and directing.” He is therefore quick to attribute his success in the trade to the discipline and professionalism he imbibed from the late actor, whose trademark was his peculiar usage of high-faluting words and expressions in films. But for the fact that providence brought him in contact with Lekinson, Fash-Lanso says he would have gone into fashion business, “buying and selling fashionable apparels.”
But while he appreciates the strides that Nollywood has recorede, Yomi firmly believes that there is still a lot of ground to cover, saying that Nollywood is not yet qualified to be tagged an industry. “It is a pity we are yet to have a film industry in Nigeria,” he laments. “What we have now is what I would call a workplace.”
He particularly frowns at the division that threatens the sector, especially the Yoruba movie industry where actors and actresses have broken into so many associations lately. According to him, “there is nothing like the Yoruba sector in the film industry in Nigeria. I look forward to the near future when we would have a formidable motion picture association that would represent the interest of all practitioners, irrespective of their geopolitical zones. Then we will have a visible and promising direction,” he said.
He also bemoans the dearth of well trained professionals in the sector. To him, formal training will always give an aspiring actor the leverage to attain an enviable height among his peers, even though he maintains that the roles of talent and hard work cannot be overemphasised.
But in a professional world where brand loyalty is vital if one must remain relevant, what has been Yomi’s staying power in an industry that seems to be saturated with brands? Yomi attributes his staying power to the consistency of his brand.
He said: “The magic of any brand is consistency, which I hold on to strongly. I was able to carve a niche for myself in the industry very early in my professional career, and I remain true to my niche.
“The movie world is as dynamic as the viewing audience and technology make it. As such, I have continued to be as creative and innovative as I can without losing my identity and niche. I am very mindful of what I do before the camera and my approach to it as a professional.”
His inspiration comes from events around him and the reading that he does. And if he is faced with a choice between acting and directing, he would opt for the latter.
Reputed as one of the busiest and most hardworking actors-cum-directors in Nollywood, Yomi does not believe that his celebrity status has any bearing on the way he relates with his family. Rather, his family, which he describes as affectionate, appreciates “where I have been able to place them in the society, even beyond Nigeria, through my profession, and they love me for it.
“Celebrity status has not succeeded in changing me from the same level-headed Yomi they knew when he was not yet a public figure. Yes, outside the family circle, it is a different ball game because the society expects certain ethos from me when they encounter me but I have tried as much as possible to be my natural self. At the same time, I believe I have been able to record a measure of success by minimising my exposure to the paparazzi.”
Nollywood has afforded Fash-Lanso all that he is today, but it has also robbed him of one of much of his private life. According to him, his privacy is the price he has had to pay for stardom.
He said: “Sometimes I just want to be me, but where I’m placed in the society and the world simmers me down a lot. Quite a number of times, I just want to be lost amongst people in joyful frenzy, but again the knowledge that all eyes are on me prevents me from doing that because any idiosyncrasies exhibited by me on such occasions would find their ways into the press the next day. In fact, pictures and tweets of such moments will adorn Nigeria’s blogs and micro-blogs.”
It is to Fash-Lanso’s credit that many of the graduate actors and actresses the Yoruba movie industry parade today found the courage to venture into the movie world. “With all sense of modesty,” he said, “I can say that I gave so many refined graduates in the industry now the courage to come into the make-believe world through my first major film, Omolade, in 1995. It was produced and directed by Prince Jide Kosoko.
“The film gave birth to young promising faces in the industry who saw Yomi Fash-Lanso as a model of success because the film was a huge success at the box office that year. And up till today, I still sensitise my co-actors to what we need to do to make it better than we have now.”
Yomi Fash-Lanso is not only blessed with good looks, he is one of Nigerian actors the opposite sex appreciates the most. This, of course, does not come without a price in the form of pressure and advances. And the actor admits that he has had to employ a measure of level-headedness to live above board in the face of the advances that come his way on a regular basis.
His words: “I appreciate the compliments wholeheartedly and I have been disciplined enough to draw the lines when the advances come in different forms and guises. The fact that ladies do walk up to me and tell me sweet things shows how much they adore Yomi Fash-Lanso, but I don’t let it get to my head.”
Fash-Lanso maintains a triangular friendship with two other top practitioners in the movie world, namely Kunle Afolayan and Funso Adeolu. But the fair complexioned actor and movie director says he extends his open arms of fellowship to “anybody that shares the same ideology with me about the profession. Such a person automatically becomes my friend; like Ibrahim Chatta, popularly known as Ojooja.
“Those two you mentioned earlier are very close to me because we talk passionately about the industry most times we meet, because it is our major.”
Like many of his colleagues have done in recent years, is there any plan by Fash-Lanso to go into politics soon? He says he does not mind embracing politics, but he expressed his hatred for the dirty nature of the vocation at the moment.
“With what is flying up and down in the Nigerian politics one will tend to have a rethink. But if sanity and ideology becomes the order in the nearest future, why not?” he said.
The acceptance hr enjoys in the society has not distracted his attention from his family as he speaks glowingly about his wife and children who, according to him, “are very cute, very loving and affectionate.
“With regards to my wife, we respect and value each other. We are blessed with kids who are equally loving and understanding. They appreciate the demands of Daddy’s trade, and as such, they make no extra demands that may stretch me beyond my limit. They have been very supportive and the least I can do to reciprocate this is to love and care for them immensely.”
But how does the busy actor relax?
“I grab every available opportunity I have to spend quality time with my family, and have massive fun. You know our work takes us away from them most times. At times I relax with my friends in or outside my profession over a drink. At other times, I sit among the elderly and listen to what my ancestors call oro agba (words of the elder).”
“So, I’m trying hard to give my children love and respect, so that they will in turn share it with the world, because that is what we need to make this world a better place for us all to live in.”
He has a word for young people who hope to take acting as a career: “Never run away from knowledge. Never see the industry as an all-comer affair. Get trained formally, even if you have the talent or you are discovered in a club, and you will earn your rightful place among star actors.”
