Dotun Taylor: How I settled 30-year rift between Tunde Kelani, Baba Wande

Dotun Taylor, the Asoju Asa Oodua of Ife, has revealed his role in the reconciliation between Baba Wande, the actor, and Tunde Kelani, the movie producer.

The decades-long dispute between both parties stemmed from royalty payments from the 1993 film ‘Ti Oluwa Ni Ile’.

Taylor, in a statement on Saturday, said Adeyeye Ogunwusi, the Ooni of Ife, appointed him to broker peace between Wande, born Kareem Adepoju, and Kelani.

The filmmaker, who owns Aroba Groove Limited, an international cultural organisation, said the Ooni chose him because of his “love for promoting Nigerian culture and arts”.

The Oodua to the Ooni said he went with some delegates from the palace to visit Kelani at his home in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, to “seal the settlement”.

He said the reconciliation birthed the seamless production of a stage play ‘Asiyanbi Ti Oluwa Ni Ile’; an adaptation of ‘Ti Oluwa Ni Ile’.

‘Ti Oluwa Nile’, initially written by Adepoju in 1987, was transformed into a three-part movie in 1993 through Kilani’s Mainframe Films and Television Productions.

In the statement, Taylor also praised the veteran entertainers for agreeing to settle their long-standing feud.

“Their actions demonstrate the importance of intergenerational collaboration, ensuring a seamless transfer of knowledge and values between the old guard and the next generation,” he said.

“By working together, we can avoid misunderstandings and misaligned efforts, ultimately driving progress and development in the entertainment industry.”