Fast rising Nollywood actress, Beverly Naya who won the Best of Nollywood Awards in 2010 may not be so popular but she is making waves with her exploits in the movie industry. The graduate of Film Making and Script Writing from Rodhampton University, UK, spoke with Chinyere Okoye about her passion

Beverly Naya relocated to Nigeria two years ago to pursue her passion for acting. Before then, she made her first visit to Nigeria when she was 15 and had only been coming during holidays afterwards. Naya who made her first entry into Nollywood during one of her holidays in Nigeria is now back to settle down. To her, Nigeria is the best place to be to pursue her career and she is evidently excited.

“Being an actress was not my childhood dream. It took me a while to know what I wanted to do with my future. I had so many ideas. I actually started with Psychology and Sociology but by the time I decided to study Drama, I knew where my passion was,” she recalled.

Naya started acting when she was 17. She then took a three-year break to study Film Making and Script Writing at Rodhampton University in London.

“I had always been passionate about acting. I always wanted to learn and understand it better. It is definitely my first love before anything else. I love acting; it is really beautiful for me. I understand that the industry here is growing and there are so many opportunities for artistes in Nigeria so I just thought Nigeria is where I need to be. I love to be in front of the camera to act as often as possible and this industry provides that. They say charity begins at Home. I’m just happy to be back home,” she said passionately.

For Naya, it is good to be back home even though it was a bit of a culture shock for her initially as she noted, “My being home is a blessings even though it has its advantages and disadvantages.”

Naya who lived in Atlanta and Chicago until she was eight years old when her family moved back to London had lived there ever since. “I’m the only child, so I had a bit of a quiet childhood but I have lots of cousins and they always made sure that I was happy and kept me company. I have some beautiful memories from my childhood,” she said.

The actress feels the way Nollywood operates it is quite different from what is obtainable in London. “The time that we have to shoot a movie in Nigeria is shorter compared to the time that we have to finish a movie in London. It is a big challenge for me. But I think I am getting used to it now and I really do enjoy it. I am driven towards challenges so it works fine for me,” she said.

Naya who has featured in a couple of movies like “Make Me a Heart”, “Angel”, “Dark Waters” amongst others, is so passionate about her role in ‘Stripped’ a movie she just shoot with Ramsey Nouah and Joseph Benjamin.

“That character is the best that I have acted so far. It was amazing; I experienced a huge variety of emotions. I can’t wait for everybody to see that movie”, she exclaimed. Naya who said she has great passion for acting, noted “for me right now, it is not really about the money. Instead, I am looking forward to the future. I am not yet where I need to be as an actress. I am still growing, learning and waiting to absorb as much knowledge as possible in order to be the best.”