Tunde Leye: How societal pressure on ladies to marry inspired ‘Finding Hubby’

Tunde Leye, an author, says societal pressure on ladies to marry inspired ‘Finding Hubby’, his upcoming movie.

He spoke on Tuesday with TheCable Lifestyle during the pre-release watch party of the movie.

Leye said it is unfortunate that the society has continued with the age-old trend of pressuring ladies into marriage despite emerging realities.

According to him, the project seeks to inspire people not to ditch happiness under the influence of pressure from families and friends in the pursuit of a partner.

“The film recognises the pressure that women especially face as they approach certain age. In the past when women marry, they might not have gotten enough education as their male counterparts and the expectations were less,” he said.

“But this time around, they get as much education and other things. Howeve, the society still ties the old expectation of when they will marry to the new realities and that has created a sort of uneven balance.

“I recognsise that pressure point and I saw that in a lot people that I interacted with — friends and families so l decided to write about it.

“So the theme of the film is about friendship. It emphasizes the fact that in the process of finding hubby, people should not lose themselves and remember that a happy marriage is the ultimate.”

Also speaking, Ade Laoye, the lead character in the movie, said there is a need for a paradigm shift in how the society view marriage.

“The pressure from society for women to settle down at a certain age can sometimes get to you. It’s a battle that we face in all areas. It may not be about marriage, it may be career, the kind of car that you drive, so it is just about making sure you know who you are. It is about knowing what makes you happy and not just about what the society says,” she said.

The actress also stressed the need for gender equality in Nigeria, noting that the country still has a long way to go in that regard.

“I think we’ve achieved some strides but we still have a long way to go. The works never end, we have to make sure that girls are getting educated at the same rate as boys, we need to make sure that girls are not being sold off into marriage. For the boys, we need to ensure there is a safe space for them to express their emotions, check their anger and violence,” she added.

The movie is billed for official release in cinemas on Friday.