By Ehimen Iyere
A Tunde Kelani film, written by Ade Adeniji is inspired by the life and times of Alhaji Ayinla Omowura, Egunmagaji of Egba Land. (1933-1980), Apala music superstar from Abeokuta (Itoko).
The movie tells me the story of a man whose talents & hard works he never gave himself some chance to enjoy because of anger and promiscuity.
According to the true life account, Ayinla started from a very humble beginning, when he began to sing, it was so obvious that was his talent and purpose. He did it so well & his people loved him.
He was just a step closer to going to London for a musical tour which was still under arrangement by a show promoter, Ajala (Kunle Afolayan) when the unexpected changed everything. His manager, Bayewu(Mr. Macaroni) got secretly enraged, watching his girlfriend, Deborah(Omowunmi Dada) becoming Ayinla’s lover. I view Bayewu as a coward because as far as his boss, Ayinla and the other band members were concerned, he introduced Deborah to them as his distant cousin, not his girlfriend.
Deborah is just a woman set with her spade to dig up some gold anywhere and anyhow. She’s simply an opportunist (Even after Ayinla’s demise, she asked Ayinla if he plan on taking another musician overseas that she should be informed. Fear women 😂)
Then there is Jaye(Ade Laoye), another story inside a story, of a young lady who simply wanted to do things in the ways that seems ambiguous to her boss. She loved Lucky Dube and Fela Kuti, and the idea of black struggle and freedom. She flows with Marxism and she dresses in ways that she feels portrays her inner self, but her Job as a reporter which was at stake at the moment pulled her towards Ayinla.
Ayinla is a man of conscience even though he was quick tempered. if you see it from my view point. He stands at the Balcony in the city of Ogun, wondering why with his present wealth, he still stoop so low, fighting with his manager and for a motorcyle he would be able to afford twice. He resolved to sort it out with Bayo and bury the hatchet after his interview. (An interview he never witnessed & a reconciliation that never happened)
“I’ll be back.” He told his driver, Deborah & Jaye, but he never came back.
Ayinla wasted a sweet opportunity, in fact, defiling the warning of his diviner, and going ahead to let anger take control of him, Ayinla after all the fame, died in the most stupid manner. Such an unnecessary brawl that saw Bayewu struck a beer mug on his head. He died from cerebral hemorrhage.
But because it is more important to live by the goodness of peoples life, Ayinla’s music cover up for all his flaws. He’s forever remembered today as a soothing voice of wisdom and life. Lovers of Apala music revered because of how he poured every of himself into his drum and sang his whole essence for people to hear, learn and enjoy.
There’s no perfect film they say, yes, despite the efforts to live in 1980, we spotted some recent embroidered outfits, colourful hair attachments used by some women, well, I don’t know much about cars, someone has said the tyres of Ayinla’s merecedes has alloy wheels which was not typical for merecedes until early 90’s.
All in all, I love the way film makers like Tunde Kelani and Kunle Afolayan bring heritage back to thia generation, it’s an obvious sign of immortality.
The movie Ayinla was released in June 2021
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