In her less than five years in the movie industry, Mercy Aigbe, has emerged one of the few methodical role interpreters with immense box office appeal, as she revealed that, “I love my job with a passion; it is what keeps me going, but there are lots of things that come with my job that would sometimes want to destabilise one.
“For instance, a section of the press have not really been fair to us. Just because you call an artiste for an interview and maybe the person is busy at that particular time and couldn’t make out time; the next thing you think you should do as a journalist is to go and write nasty things about that person.
“At times like that, I just sit back and say God, it is not easy. But because of the love I have for my job and because I believe in myself and because I believe in God and put Him first in everything I do, He always gives me the strength to pull through and go on.
“So I can’t say I have ever regretted being an actress, but I’ll say some of the challenges that come with it may be sometimes overwhelming.”
When asked if she has ever been embarrassed in her job or in any circumstance, her reply was, “sometimes, I’ll just be driving or walking on the streets and people would be pointing at me, saying, “look at that girl that is always snatching somebody’s boyfriend in the movies, others would say look at that girl that is always shouting in the film, they don’t know that the character you play is different from who you really are. But its fun, it shows that people are really following your work.”
She disclosed how she was once paid a pittance for a lead role. “When I was a greenhorn, I went to a location and played the lead role in a movie. It was a shock to me when we finished and the producer squeezed five naira into my hand. I felt like breaking down and cry. And this was a time when I already had a car and a flourishing business. I sat in my car in tears and said, “God, what is this? Is this for chewing-gum or what? But I took it and kept the hopes alive. It’s been getting better since then. And today, I have been smilling to the bank, but I can’t tell you the precise figure I earn but I give God the glory,” she concluded.
