“Kannywood hates you.” Those were the words uttered in a bitter and worried tone by Fatima Sadau as her sister, a Nollywood actress, Rahama Sadau, discussed her 10th-year acting anniversary plan with close relatives. That protectiveness, care and sisterhood was what viewers have seen amongst the Sadau Sisters – Rahama, Aisha, Fatima, and Zainab, on Showmax’s reality TV show.
The sibling rivalry, petty fights, and fun moments have kept reality TV enthusiasts glued to their seats as we follow the lives of the four sisters: Rahama, an award-winning actress; Aisha, a makeup artist; Fatima; a model; and Zainab, a restaurateur. These sisters decide to move in together, navigating the intricacies of sisterhood and dealing with family scuffles.
But beyond the petty fights that the sisters have refused to let go of, especially with Rahama and Zainab, the show addresses Rahama Sadau’s controversies and their effects on the Sadau as a family as they relentlessly kicked against inviting any Kannywood star to her celebration of 10 years in Nollywood.
Fatima and Aisha have reasons for their reservations against Rahama’s intention of inviting Kannywood stars. Considered a representation and role models of sorts, some actresses who happen to be in touch with the Kannywood industry (Hausa-language film industry) have faced backlash for not preserving a ‘moral and virtuous image,’ so much that being a step out of line means that you’ve blasphemed against Prophet Muhammad.
In 2020, Rahama Sadau was involved in a controversy after she posted photos of herself in a backless dress on Instagram. The picture she captioned ‘regal’, garnered reactions from Arewa users (Northern Nigerians), who believed that her dress was provocative for a female Muslim. She was tagged blasphemous. At that moment Rahama was ‘culpable’ of blasphemy and according to Sharia law, blasphemy is punishable by death. Many Northern Nigerians deemed it an ‘appropriate’ punishment for wearing a backless dress.
Before then, in 2016, Sadau also faced backlash in the Northern and Kannywood industry after she was featured as a love interest in a music video by pop star, ClassiQ. Muhammadu Kabiru Maikaba, the former Chairman of the Motion Pictures Practitioners Association of Nigeria (MAPPAN), which governs Kannywood, openly branded her behaviour as ‘wayward’, while others in the industry corroborated the statement.
Recounting several of the incidents where Rahama had faced backlash from the industry which in various ways affected the family, Fatima felt it was out of place for her sister to invite the same people who ‘bullied’ her.
“The people that you are inviting are the same people that put us into depression. How can you invite people that don’t like you to the point that they don’t care if you die,” Fatima, the youngest of the four sisters, exclaimed as she looked at her sister bewildered right across the dining table where they were having lunch.
Backtracking to 2015, Rahama was also banned for 6-months for reporting sexual harassment. The actress had taken to her Instagram platform at age 21 to tell her story and accused Kannywood director Adam Zango of firing her from his film ‘Duniya Makaranta’ because she turned down his sexual advances.
As a result, she was banned from the industry. While Abdullahi Ganduje, the then Kaduna Governor, reversed her ban in 2018, after Sadau formally apologised, she was blacklisted and regarded as an outsider.
At every stage, from 2015 – 2020, she and her family have borne the brunt of the backlash emotionally.
However, in celebrating her 10-year anniversary in the Nigerian movie industry, Rahama invited her former colleagues from Kannywood.
She said, “I don’t have a problem with them. It all started from Kannywood and it only feels right to invite a few key people in the industry to join the celebration. You like me, you don’t like me, if I’m doing something and I feel like you can fit into the celebration, I’ll call you.”
Regardless of her sister’s reservations, Rahama invited some of Kannywood’s actors and filmmakers such as Ali Nuhu, Umar UK, Sadiq Sani Sadiq, Mukhtar Young Boy and Yasin Awal. They honoured the invitation and gave their felicitations at the event.
Showmax’s documentation of their reality doesn’t only document her victory but it seals it and tells her story to millions of young Nigerians and gives young girls who look to be fearless in a conservative society hope. Her story goes beyond becoming a successful actress, she, regardless of opposition, has become the poster actress for one of the biggest Kannywood stars, whether the community accepts her or not. It’s impressive.