Fast rising actress, Nse Ikpe-Etim, took some time off years back from Nollywood to pursue her other passion. The Abuja based actress has been working in the bank until recently when she dumped her banking career, and went back on her first love. But the interesting thing about her is that she is one those lucky few who have been able to find their way back to where they used to belong. Almost immediately after her return, her first break through was her role in the blockbuster movie, Reloaded, where she acted as Ramsey Noah’s wife and ever since then it’s been from one success story to another. But apart from her successful acting career which has always been in the news ever since she got back, another news of her that is spreading like wildfire is her alleged romance with Nollywood handsome dude, Fred Amata. She has been alleged to be having an affair with Fred Amata for 13 years now. Though most people didn’t know about it then since she was working in a Bank in Abuja then. But it was gathered that they have been visiting each other shuttling between Lagos and Abuja. The whole thing became very glaring not too long after she came back to Nollywood. It all has to do with the period Fred Amata was part of the Celebrity Takes 2 as Nse was said to have used her face book account to canvass for Fred Amata and asked people to vote for Fred Amata. This is what she put on the social network, “Please guys, I’d like you to do me a personal favor and support Fred Amata by voting for him in the Celebrity Takes 2. I promise I would not have asked this favor if it were not important to me”
Nse did not stop at that as she went on to add, “It was not easy for me to get to where I am at the moment. I encountered many stumbling blocks along the way and almost gave up. Fred Amata was one of those people that never stopped believing in me. He spurred me to continue and did not give up on me even when I gave up on myself. He is one of my mentors and one of the best pioneers of Nollywood, the industry that has made you all notice and love me and molded me into what I am today.
This reason, I plead with you from the bottom of my heart to support him”
That was when most people concluded that there must be more to the relationship, since she wasn’t doing that for her other male colleagues in the competition. And the fact that the face book is a public social site makes it easy for people to conclude that she is actually proud of him and not hiding that fact. According to what City People gathered, Nse holds a high respect for Fred Amata as he was one of those who helped her to come back into the industry. And she also seems to have a long lasting relationship with Fred’s brother, Jeta. Last week City People Fashion Editor BOLA AKINBOADE put all these allegations to her on her affair with Fred Amata, and she opened up her on her alleged romance plus how she was able to break-even within a short period of time.
For quite sometime now, there has been this rumor of your alleged romance with Fred Amata, what was your reaction when you first heard about it?
Oh not again Bola… Haba…..make the man for drink water drop cup like the Koko master would say. I am sure he laughs each time he reads it the same way I laughed when I saw it. It is a laughable matter anyway. Because how can I be in an alleged relationship with someone I don’t even have his number. I found that very interesting.
What then is really the state of the relationship between you and Fred?
No doubt, Fred is a fine man and any woman would want to associate with him any day or anytime. I don’t have any problem being tagged with him. He is like a brother to me because his younger brother is my best friend. When I left the industry years back, he was one of the people who wanted me back and kept encouraging and the excuse I always had then was Oh, I am in the bank. So I don’t see how people will equate friendship to dating as there is no iota of truth in the alleged romance news making waves around town.
There are those who believe that if there was nothing between you and Fred, why did you allow your manager to use your face book account during his participation in the Celebrity Takes 2?
If I allowed my manager to use my face book account, what is the big deal? Can’t I do something for a friend? I cannot choose who my manager campaigns for and besides everyone is entitled to a point of view. My manager asked for my permission in using my face book account to campaign for Fred, and I gave her a go-ahead. That is the least I can do for a friend.
Why didn’t you do the same for the other guys in the competition to buttress the point?
I have no point to prove Bola…….
So do you consider Fred as the kind of guy you can settle down with perhaps if he proposes?
Thinking of it alone is INCESTOUS
You also seem to have a good relationship with Fred’s brother, Jeta, can you tell us about it?
Jeta is my best friend. He has been my friend for over a decade
But is Nse in any relationship now and who is the lucky guy?
No I am not.
What qualities do you admire in your MR RIGHT?
Like I once said, there is no Mr. Right. But if this question was asked differently as in my dream man, this would be my answer…. A God fearing man who is without airs, yet a slight arrogance which makes him reek of confidence and most of all an unbeatable sense of humor.
Ever since you came back to Nollywood, your career has been on the rise, how does that makes you feel?
I must say that the Grace of God has been abundant in my life, so I have been happy amidst other things.
But why did you leave Nollywood in the first place?
I left because I wanted much at the time; I was in search of self. I think when you are trying to discover yourself, you are constantly searching for yourself and when you are doing that, you want to be satisfied with whatever you are doing. It’s not new to move from place to place but at the end, what you achieve is greater because it is then you’ll know what you want and your worth.
Which role shot you back to limelight when you got back on the scene?
It’s my role as Omoze in Reloaded. And the interesting about the role was that it was practically imposed on me by Emem Isong. She kept encouraging me, telling me I could do it and I went in there and I did what I have to do. And today, I am grateful for her for that big support because if not for her, probably, I wouldn’t have been considered for acting again.
What is the most challenging role you have ever played?
In fairness to all my roles, I think they have been all challenging.
You’re a presently in a make-believe industry where people have different opinions about actresses. How then will you describe yourself?
I am not your girl next door; I am more like the girl down your street.
