We didn’t even have a cup to drink water not to talk of a stove to cook – Ramsey Nouah

He is handsome and cute. He is the kind of guy every woman would love to have. For his numerous roles in romantic films, his fans call him ‘lover-boy’. But most of them may never know that behind his handsome face lies ‘the bad and the ugly’.

In an exclusive interview with The Entertainer (Sun)  Ramsey Tokunbo Nouah recalls the unforgettable, tormenting experiences of his life when he was humbled by poverty. Here, he remembers the dark days when he slept under the bridge in Lagos without food. His story is quite touching.

Read below:

Tell us about your growing up?

My growing up was like tasting the two sides of a coin. When I said tasting the two sides of a coin; I mean tasting being a rich man and a poor man. I grew up with my mother, and with a silver spoon, I had it all. When I began to realize that I had good things to show off, everything disappeared. We started from grace to grass; that has helped me a lot because it totally balanced the equation of life. It gives me confidence in all spheres. For instance, I can hang out with the enlightened or the rich. I can mingle with them very easily without any complication or complex whatsoever. Also, if it is the low class or poor people, I can mingle very easily with them. I can eat a fantastic dinner in a huge, expensive restaurant and I can go eat amala at a buka and I would not feel anything. I don’t care being a popular actor or a role model. I am a role model to everybody.

For you, what was the worst scenario when life was so cruel?
Those were the times when things got really bad for my mother and I and we had nothing. It was so bad that we didn’t have a home or shelter to live in. We had to stay in a store, a small store that could take only one mat. My mother and I squeezed ourselves in that mat. We didn’t even have a cup to drink water not to talk of a stove to cook. And my mother had to borrow, beg and stuff like that. These were moments when I was young I didn’t realize the gravity of poverty we were in, I couldn’t tell. But it was a good orientation for me. It was moments that I thank God for making me past through, because that has sustained and helped me even as an actor. The ability to deliver all the roles they give me because I have tasted both sides of the coin.