Veteran actoress, Ireti Doyle, shared a post on her Instagram page where she addressed colourism, she revealed how her skin color almost made her lose her first TV commercial.
The actress spoke of how the client wanted to turn her down because she was dark-skinned, which was below the ideal complexion needed.
However, the director of the Tv commercial, Mr. Wale Fanu, used his influence to ensured she wasn’t dropped from the commercial.
Iretiola Doyle shared the story to encourage dark-skinned ladies who might feel inferior to their light-skinned counterparts.
She wrote;
”I shot my 1st tv commercial over two decades ago. It was a major deal for an upcoming actor; for the visibility and the pay check.
I nearly lost that gig for being the wrong skin colour. I didn’t match the client rep’s “ideal”.
Thankfully, the director, Mr. Wale Fanu wasn’t a push over. He told the chap to let him do his thing or take him off the project.
Fast forward 20yrs, “Melanin Poppin” has become a # and the dark skinned girl is having her day in the sun.
It might take a little while longer, but eventually it will be clear that “loud and obnoxious” is not quite the same as “bold and audacious”…And that being polite, soft spoken and demure, is not “fake”; neither is it a “weakness”. ?@kelechiamadiobi(AMVCA 2016)”.
