Adesua Etomi: I once stored my clothes in empty freezer… I had no wardrobe

Adesua Etomi, the Nigerian actress, has recounted some of her worst childhood experiences.

The movie star spoke about her career, family, and childhood with Ebuka Obi-Uchendu during the latest edition of ‘BlackBox’.

Etomi said many years ago — after her mother traveled to the United Kingdom — she struggled with accommodation issues and had to stay with different relatives.

The actress said when those “living conditions” didn’t go well for them, she moved into a small apartment with her sister.

Etomi, who is now married to Banky W, said the apartment was stuffy and because they had no wardrobe to keep their clothes, they opted to fold them in an empty freezer. 

“We started off staying with dad’s sister, then dad’s brother, when those living situations didn’t work out, i stayed with my grandpa. When that didn’t work out, we moved to a property in a place called Jeba,” he said.

“My sister and I started living alone. That was quite hard because we were very young. There are days when there’d be no food.

“There were so much stuff in the place and it was just a room and a parlour, we used to fold our clothes in an empty freezer because there was no wardrobe.

“We went through our share of tough times, and I think that’s part of the things that have shaped who I am right now.

“I’m grateful for that experience and I wouldn’t want any child to go through that because no child should have to go through it. But that was the situation we found ourself and we made the best of it as much as we could.”

The mother of one said she later joined her mother in the United Kingdom when she was 14.

The film star, 34, described her initial experience in London as a “culture shock”, adding that she was bullied.

“I was African, [so the kids there would always tell me that], and they made it seem like something you should be ashamed. They tried to bully me but you can’t bully me,” the actress said.

“I stood up for myself. Bullying was quite a thing at the time. So you hear about lot of bullying stories.”