‘Newspapers concoct stories about me to sell’
Weekend Magazine: The Uche Jombo everyone knows used to be fleshier than what we see. Did you slim down to fit into the ‘skinny-babe’ mode as is usually the case in the fashion industry? Uche Jombo: It really has nothing to do with fashion trends. I had to shed weight to play a role in […]
Weekend Magazine: The Uche Jombo everyone knows used to be fleshier than what we see. Did you slim down to fit into the ‘skinny-babe’ mode as is usually the case in the fashion industry?
Uche Jombo: It really has nothing to do with fashion trends. I had to shed weight to play a role in a movie where I’m supposed to have cancer. I’ll do anything to show my concern and advocacy for the fight against cancer.
WM: So, what is the secret to your new shape?
Jombo: Nothing much. Just sticking to a diet and a lot of exercise.
WM: Celebrities have bad days with the media. How do you handle such instances when you are involved?
Jombo: Stardom has always brought along with it positivity and negativity. But I have come to understand that most of these papers tend to concoct stories just to sell.
WM: Recently you were a star guest at a charity event for cancer awareness…
Jombo: Yes. It was a very touching experience for me. My ‘it’ moment happened when I was on a trip and I was reading a book about someone that had cancer and all the travails and pains she faced trying to find a cure for it but to avail. Reading the book made me shed tears. During that same trip also I came across a lady inflicted with cancer and listening to her story just made me feel that there was something that needed to be done to create awareness and finding a lasting solution.
I’ll always be a major advocate for the fight against cancer.
WM: In your years of acting what has been your most challenging movie and role?
Jombo: I would say ‘Holding Hope’ and ‘The Haunting’. ‘Holding Hope’ is the movie I was speaking about earlier, the experience I had during a flight. When I arrived I called a friend, Emem Isong, and I told her about it and I asked her if we could do a movie on that. We also called Emeka Ike and that was when he told me that if I had to star in the movie, I had to lose some weight. And from there, we kicked off and that is how that movie came about.
WM: How would you say your career has affected your life?
Jombo: It has made me see things in different perspectives and enabled me to put myself in the shoes of others.