Veteran actor Jide Kosoko has recounted how colleague Baba Elesho stepped in during a tense standoff with Muslim protesters who opposed the release of his 1993 film Amina Eleha.
Speaking on the African A-List podcast, Kosoko said he wrote the story because he knew some people hide behind religion. In the film, a Muslim woman commits adultery. Some Alfas came forward and said the film must not be released. They complained particularly about the name of the character, Amina, because it was the name of Prophet Muhammad’s mother.
“Does that even make sense?” he asked. “There are countless Jacobs, Muhammads, and Rashidis in detention after committing crimes.”
The film, which starred Adebukola Mosoba (who later became known as Amina Eleha), faced backlash. At Badiya, some Alfas who tie headscarves started tearing down his posters, and the Badiya boys came out to defend their community. Kosoko said he did not want people saying he started a religious conflict.
That is when Elesho, whom Kosoko said he loves despite his talkativeness, helped him out.
“That was when I discovered he actually understood Arabic,” Kosoko said.
When the Muslims came to his office to fight, Elesho was the one who confronted about eight of them, exchanging Arabic recitations and correcting what he saw as inaccurate claims.
“He was the only one who faced all seven of them. If one person spoke Arabic, he would tell them it wasn’t correct.”
Kosoko described the episode as a moment that showed both the sensitivity of the subject and the loyalty of a colleague who stepped forward when others might have stayed quiet.
The actress who played the lead later spoke publicly about the personal toll the controversy took on her, saying Muslim worshippers “showed me hell on earth” and that she nearly ran mad after the production.