“KUNLE AFOLAYAN IS MY SUCCESS STORY” – TUNDE KELANI
By Joseph Adebiyi
It’s no news that Kunle Afolayan takes Tunde Kelani as a mentor, father and friend but this was further confirmed at the send forth gig in honour of Hakeem Kae- Kazim at Igbojaye, Komu in Itesiwaju Local Government, Oyo, the film village of Golden Effects Productions where Tunde Kelani said “Kunle Afolayan is my success story”.
The Nollywood veteran rained praises on him(Kunle) saying he is taking African Cinema to level he had never thought possible, as it was all smiles and everybody had a thing or two to say during the send forth party for for the Hollywood star actor who just rounded up his his role in Kunle Afolayan’s new project which the title is yet to be disclosed.
Tunde Kelani and Kunle Afolayan’s relationship dateD back to his acting debut in Saworoide as Aresejabata which was produced and directed by the veteran, Tunde Kelani. Their relationship is no ordinary relationship, but rather a father-son bond which has stood the test of time and has developed into the “ride-or-die” loyalty we see in the movies. After Kunle Afolayan’s acting debut in the 1998 movie; Saworoide which was released in 1999, he made other appearances in Tunde Kelani’s legendary films; Agogo Ewo (sequel to Saworoide) ,Dazzling Mirage as Dotun and Ayinla.
On a panel discussion session of The Africa International Film Festival 2021 edition, Kunle Afolayan said he doesn’t like partnering with people in the Nollywood movie industry because it often ends in problems. This he tries to avoid and that’s why he is sticking to like minds who share the same level of creativity with him like Tunde Kelani.
According to reports, Tunde Kelani constantly visits the set of Kunle Afolayan’s productions and always provides his veteran expertise when needed. Both of them have partnered in a lot of iconic productions most recently AYINLA a musical eponymous film based on the life of Ayinla Yusuf popularly known as Ayinla Omowura.
Photograph credits: Facebook page Tunde Kelani Mainframe Productions
