Zeb Ejiro’s ‘Ripples: The New Generation’ returns after a 30-year hiatus

* ‘For me, this is history, the first soap opera coming back after 30 years’

* Overflow of emotions over Saint Obi, Chico Ejiro abruptly ends interview session

By Godwin Okondo

THE Publisher of Yes International! magazine, Azuh Arinze, on Wednesday, July 12, 2023 held an Instagram live session with the respected Nigerian filmmaker, Zeb Ejiro (OON), to discuss the return of his famous soap opera, Ripples, which was a household name some 30 years ago, and still remains memorable cinematic experience among those who saw its first premiere in the late 1980s. The soap opera featured prominent Nigerian actors, with some still experiencing youthful exuberance at the time, but who have grown to be astute performers to be reckoned with over time, and literally define Nigeria’s cine-craft industry many years after.

While speaking on the success of Ripples back then, Ejiro, popularly called the Sheikh in the movie industry, said, “Ripples was a monster hit when it was launched in 1988. Today, when you see different TV series being made, you begin to wonder if the scriptwriters are trained to do their jobs properly. Most of the actors on Ripples are still alive today. So, we decided to bring it back and remake it as Ripples: The New Generation, and the battle is between the children of this new generation, with the parents also there to guide them. We have aired three episodes and people are catching up so fast because it resonates with those who watched it in the past. For me, this is history. This is the first soap opera coming back after 30 years, thanks to AfricaMagic, and I’m so happy. For those who saw Ripples back then, they are saying, ‘Thank you.’ We can see the old actors featured, as well as the new and upcoming generation (of actors). People are going to see something unique about Ripples.”

Zeb Ejiro (OON)

On the inspiration behind the remake of Ripples after 30 years, Ejiro said, “I was a vibrant young man with a lot of things running through my head. I decided to create a TV series after watching Mirror in the Sun. Ripples had a five-year run from its first episode. Now, there are a lot of TV series growing hot, like Tinsel which has been running for a few years now. So, we need to go back to our drawing board and do better.

“AJC was our sponsor then, through which we did 15 episodes, and another 15 after we asked them for another sponsorship deal. The third time we asked for a sponsorship, they simply asked us to go on with the series because they loved it. There were some issues between them and NTA, so we had to put the show on hold. Stopping Ripples was not of our making, because we were ready to go on, and now, we are back and better and equipped with better stories.”

Sharing his opinion on the current state of affairs in Nollywood, the Delta-born filmmaker, said, “The younger generation of actors, as well as the technical guys are doing an amazing job at the moment, but they need to try hard to make the stories better.”

Ejiro also spoke on movie projects he has was currently involved which he said compete with the success of his popular movie, Domitilla, noting, “I have worked on many other movies, and I have another I’m trying to release by next month. We were also affected by the cash crunch, the election, and the rising cost of commodities. During the naira redesign that caused scarcity problems, a lot of people would go to cinemas and they would be unable to make payments.”

But the interview soon took on an emotional tone when some deaths in Nollywood came up, particularly two that touched the movie mogul in a raw way. The first was the one of Saint Obi, an actor he literally made and the second being that of his younger brother, Chico Ejiro. These two painful recollections spiralled the interview out of control, as both men – Ejiro and Arinze – couldn’t hold back the floodgate of tears to mourn two of the finest men that made huge mark on Nigeria’s movie industry, but who passed on at the prime of their lives.

In a broken voice, Ejiro spoke about the late actor, Saint Obi, explaining how they met, and the sad events that led to his death: “He was a brother, best friend, and somebody God used me to bring into the industry and his death hit me hard. People were telling me he was dead, but I refused to listen until I called his sister, who confirmed it. It was so difficult losing Saint Obi and Chico Ejiro, the two great guys in my life.

“The first time we met, I was casting for Goodbye Tomorrow and we had agreed that Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD) would play the role. A week before shooting, RMD lost his wife, May Ellen Ezekiel and was devastated. I was looking for someone to play the role and he (Saint Obi) walked into my office, and I auditioned and scripted him for the role. He was a professional kind of actor who wanted his role to be perfect.

“The last time we met, we spoke very deeply and he didn’t look sick. So, when I heard he was dead, I was shocked. I wanted him to be in the remake of Ripples, but his phone wasn’t going through. Two weeks later, he called me from Jos and asked me to pray for him, because he was ill. But he said he was getting better though, only for me to later get the news that he was dead. I won’t forget his humility. He was a shy person who would never hurt a fly. He couldn’t be in a gathering for too long.”

Zeb Ejiro

If Saint Obi’s death broke Ejiro, speaking about his younger brother, Chico Ejiro’s death finally broke the dam of tears for him: “I feel so lonely because he was just like a twin to me. We did a lot of things together and I miss everything about him. It was my son who broke the news of his death to me. He came into my room very early in the morning and told me he wanted to discuss something with me. He was being so formal and I asked him what the matter was, and he told me that Chico had died. I broke down in tears that morning.

“I couldn’t drive, so a friend came over and drove me to the mortuary. When we got there, I saw him and he was still looking fresh like nothing had happened, and I began to try to wake him up, asking him to get up, so we could go home, until the attendant came to me and told me that he was dead. I always feel like he is somewhere and will just pop out someday. It’s still tough for me because we spoke everyday, we discussed our projects with each other. But now, I go solo most of the time, but I’ve tried my best to struggle through it.”

At this point, the Sheikh of the movie industry broke down completely and cried for his dear younger brother, who died on Christmas Day on December 25, 2020. Ejiro’s host, Arinze, who was very close to Chico, also broke down and both men cried uncontrollably. This sudden overflow of emotions would bring the interview session to an abrupt end, with the promise that a new date would be announced for a repeat of the interview session.