Ghanaian award winning actress Roselyn Ngissah despite her size still shines in the industry. The actress has revealed to Graphic Showbiz how she love her shape and some challenges she faces.
Most female celebrities in showbiz would do everything to shed weight to meet public expectation of them. Not actress Roselyn Ngissah, popular for movies such as 4Play, Somewhere in Africa, The Miser, Adam’s Apples and The Pledge. She says she has no intention of following this trend.
“I have always had a big body shape before I entered showbiz and I believe that my weight doesn’t hinder me pursuing my career on stage and in movies. I won’t criticise anyone who wants to shed weight to look more attractive but I don’t need to shed any weight because I don’t have any qualms with the way I look now”.
Talking to Showbiz last week, Roselyn said that even though many people were doubtful that she could make it in showbiz because of her weight, she has proved them wrong by working hard to realise her career dream.
“I quite remember that when I started acting, some of the producers who approached me with scripts tried to convince me to lose weight in order to get me more roles but I refused because I didn’t want to do anything that was against my will. I loved the way I looked then and I still love the way I look now because this is me and I can’t force myself to look like a model when I know I am not one just to get more roles as an actress”.
She admitted that her weight may have been a concern for some producers because most of their movie stories followed a particular trend which called for actresses who were slim and appear sexy rather than plump ones like herself but the trend has changed and actresses like herself have also had the opportunity to exploit their acting talent without much consideration to their body sizes.
“Prior to my role in 4Play which could be said was a breakthrough for me in my acting career, most of the roles I had previously played were more corporate because of my weight but today, that has changed and I can play any role just like any other actress”.
According to the joint Best Actress Ghana Movie Awards 2010 winner, her only frustration sometimes with her body size, has been the difficulty in getting her dress sizes easily.
“You know that in Ghana today, slim ladies are considered more fashionable so most of the shops in town have not got dresses of my size so it gets quite difficult to get a perfect dress that will match my size but apart from that, I am more than okay with my body size because I am an African woman”
When asked under what circumstances she would agree to lose weight, Roselyn remarked, “I will only shed some flesh for health reasons but now, my medical checks have shown that I am healthy and not obese as many think. Besides, my weight is genetic because this is how most of my family members look and they are very healthy”
Bearing the name “Ngissah”, many people have assumed that Roselyn hails from the northern part of Ghana. “On several occasions, I have been asked which part of the North I come from and I have had to explain that I am Akan. My mother hails from Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo Region while my dad is from Nchei in the Westen Region. It gets even more interesting when people approach me to enquire whether I am Ghanaian or not”.
A graduate from the University of Ghana’s School of Performing Arts, the actress says she is yet to play any “impossible” role since she started acting. “Initially, I thought the role I played in Somewhere In Africa was going to be most challenging for me but the director made the role quite interesting and easy for me than I had assumed”.
Even though Roselyn wouldn’t reveal much about romance and relationships, she didn’t hide her joy about the thought of getting married some day and settling down with her husband.
“I know it is the joy and wish of every woman to find the right man to start a family with and even though I cannot disclose to you now whether I have found him or not, I can assure everyone that I’m working at it and when the time comes, I will not conceal it from the public”.
Roselyn has received several awards and nominations in recognition of her hard work among which are Best Actress at the Ghana Movie Awards in 2010, Nominee for Best Supporting Role at the Ghana Movie Awards in 2011 and Best Supporting Actress at the PAMSA Awards held in Nigeria in 2011.
