Why we make political movies – Mubarak Abba

Mubarak Abba has produced many Hausa movies that address social vices, such as ‘Siyasa ko Kabilanci’, ‘Duniya da Lahira’, ‘Yankin Imani’ and ‘BakinZinari’. His most recent film is the much awaited ‘Al’ummarmu’, which focuses on political and religious crises. In this interview, he talks about the movie and more. Excerpts:   Weekend Magazine: What influenced […]

Mubarak Abba has produced many Hausa movies that address social vices, such as ‘Siyasa ko Kabilanci’, ‘Duniya da Lahira’, ‘Yankin Imani’ and ‘BakinZinari’. His most recent film is the much awaited ‘Al’ummarmu’, which focuses on political and religious crises. In this interview, he talks about the movie and more. Excerpts:

 

Weekend Magazine: What influenced your decision to produce “Al’ummarmu”?

Mubarak Abba: Al’ummarmu, which means “Our People”, was conceived many years ago as a result of some sad events, particularly as regards political unrest. These are caused by religious intolerance and political differences and have led to loss of lives and property. Example; what is happening in Kafanchan, Kaduna State, and places like Taraba. It really breaks my heart to see that we attack each other as a result of very trivial issues.

As a movie producer, I thought it would be good to make an effort, even if we don’t earn a penny, to educate our audience on the dangers of such unrests.

“Al’ummarmu” aims to inculcate in us religious and political tolerance. I believe every individual in this nation is a stakeholder in ensuring that we all live in peace with one another. This movie is our contribution towards achieving religious tolerance.

WM: Can you share a bit about the movie?

Abba: It’s about a Christian family and a Muslim family who were living peacefully. They related with each other and did business with trust and respect. Unfortunately, even though they were religious leaders and understood the need for peaceful coexistence, they failed to control their subjects on issues of love and politics. The movie shows that as a result of their inability to exact control over their subjects, crisis erupted between the two hitherto peaceful religious families cum communities that led to destruction of lives and property.

WM: Why did you choose to address political violence at this time?

Abba: We are in a political era; and whether we like it or not, democracy has come to stay. Therefore, we have to make it work since we have no option, and making it work is a collective responsibility. We owe a duty to ourselves to educate our people through such movie. We are aware that no meaningful development can be achieved without peace, and since we want development, we then have to plan, nurture and ensure peace.

WM: What makes the movie different from many others?

Abba: In “Al’ummarmu”, Muslims played the role of Christians. We did a lot of research with the help of some notable Christian friends to see that we present things the way they are. We demonstrated church activities as they happen in real life. Honestly, we have benefited and learned a lot of good things from these Christian friends, and I must commend them for their willingness to work with us and give their own contribution in tackling the menace of religious intolerance among us.

We spent a lot in producing this movie and faced a lot of challenges. But I am proud to state that it was worth the trouble.

WM: What influenced the selection of your cast?

Abba: We carefully selected artistes with the required experience. Artistes we believed could give the film exactly what it needed. That was why we selected Al-amin Buhari to play the role of a reverend father. We also used Ibrahim Maishinku as the Muslim leader. The producers spent a fortune in its production. The irony is that even before its release into the market, we were receiving encouraging messages from all over the nation and enjoyed the support of security agencies, notable politicians and religious leaders from the inception of the movie till date.

WM: When will the movie be released into the market?

Abba: It is not going to be business as usual. We don’t intend to take it to the cinemas as we used to, because our target audience are the youths. Therefore, we have decided to use the viewing centres scattered across the state and also across some neighbouring states. This way, we believe we will be able to reach out to our target audience. We intend to release the movie all at once and not in parts. This is because we want the target audience to watch everything without being disconnected from the intended message meant for them. So, we have settled for February 1, 2019, as the official release date.