Three months ago, US-based philanthropist Dr. Belinda Babila revealed that her foundation Belinda Babila Foundation (BBF) has partnered with Begoty Media , a media arm of the Foundation, to produce what they dubbed “A movie for a cause” Bamboozler.
The movie produced by Dr. Babila and directed by Nigerian veteran Chidi Mokeme, was scheduled to premiere in Cameroon first, before any other venue in the world and that was achieved over the weekend. In Cameroon, all roads led to Douala, precisely Bonanjo on Saturday April 9.
With the unprecedented mad rush for tickets, the anticipation was wild, and no wonder the organizers had envisioned the movie premiere to begin at 3 PM Central African Time, at Hotel LA Falaise Diamond, Bonanjo so as to satisfy the hunger of these attendees.
Most people obviously would consider 3 PM as “Black Man Time”, given that the culture of promptness, is always in absentia, when we talk about attending events in this part of the world.
However, following the tremendous publicity built around the movie, the hunger to be the first to watch it, saw a plethora of persons, on site at that time. At this time, the hall was still being set up, posters, backdrops and the red Carpet was still underway, but these people who arrived early enough, were patient till the perfect hour, when the red carpet began properly.
Of course, they saw the likes of Nollywood actor Zack Orji arranging chairs and tables, something we don’t see even in movies. Someone like Zack Orji could have chosen to show up at the honorary hour and would still be celebrated or given his plaudits, but decided to share a little of his humility by being there from the first to the last minute.
The red carpet moments were all about the glitz and glam. Everyone looked energetic, prepared and the aura was extremely positive. Security wasn’t overlooked either. The atmosphere was a mature one, as everyone lived the moment.
Award-winning red carpet host Joan Ngomba, remarked for her sumptuousness on the red carpet had been stuck in traffic at the outskirts of Bonaberi while coming from Buea, but she pulled through finally and delivered like she was born for the job she sure does better than anyone. Fur Glory, filled in the void effortlessly and she did live her own moments, a night not to forget I guess given that it was her first outing of that sort.
The Masters of Ceremony
For the first time in the history of Cameroonian entertainment, Dulafe Valery Tata and Christian Steve Bernard Fonkam known to many as, ‘The most swagged communicator’ and ‘MC extraordinaire’ respectively, were hosts of tis exciting event. These two, especially Fonkam, are one of the most talked about MC’s of their generation in this domain. Many would have loved to see a man and woman on stage, but it wasn’t much of a big deal as these two murdered it!
For Steve Fonkam who had been smart enough to be on ground early enough to coordinate the stage set-up, he would use that opportunity in his favor, to meet most of the dignitaries. He used that to add to his dexterity, no wonder he’s always one step ahead. What about Dulafe who only left Yaounde that same morning given it was his birthday and arrived almost during at the hours the event was designated to start? You’d expect him to be tired and find some difficulties in relating on stage.
You’d expect both to have some natural difficulties flying the audience to the stratospheric realm of entertainment, but you can’t imagine how these two owned the stage, having to blend like that for the first time is worth applauding.
Worthy of note, is that Steve Fonkam knew his audience in-out to throw more accolades. He’s a hype man, and proved yet again why he was and will be the right man to unzip your pocket. Dulafe on the other hand isn’t really a hype man perse, but he’s an animator by sheer class. In all, take nothing from their night. Their outfits alone, were a sausage to their hosting dish.
Artist Performances
In a bid to light up the show, there were a few artists who mounted the stage to contribute to the success of the night but did they succeed? Let’s see!!
With a seemingly tired and bored audience, you wouldn’t doubt that laughter doeth good as medicine would you? So what was the first step to start healing an indifferent/lukewarm crowd? The answer is simple. An energetic Le boi synthetic was the first dose of that medication. Like the say, how you start a show either fixes it or spoils it entirely and as such, he must be credited for starting the night in cool and calm but then very intriguing fashion.
He was replaced on stage by Senior Pastor Comedian who needs no introduction by the way. He has mastered his art of standup Comedy and just does it like it’s easy. You’re really a comic god, if you step on stage of a cameroonian show/event and the audience laughs or cheers, especially after waiting for hours before the commencement of the said event. So it’s fair to blow a knockout for him.
1Touch undoubtedly thrilled with a Chris Brown studded performance. His dance crew stirred the atmosphere with their moves. He was the first singer of the night and delivered tellingly.
