By Benjamin Njoku

Mena Sodje is surely one of the promising actresses to look out for in the coming year. Since she made her acting debut as a child without experience or forewarning, Mena has not looked back in quest to be the best she can be on screen. She would hold this torch for acting for many years, even while studying Accounting and Finance at Delta State University, Abraka.

As soon as she graduated from the university, the actress decided to get  more training, this time in acting. In 2014, she enrolled in the Royal Arts Academy Nigeria and started acting professionally in 2015. She played a minor role, Oby, in Jenifa’s Diary season 1 (Episode 13). She also starred in two Royal Arts Academy projects as ‘Hope James’ in Spotlight and ‘Nurse Ada’ in season 2 of Losing Control.

Determined to hone her craft, Mena attended trainings and workshops, one of which was at the Africa International Film Festival,AFRIFF, in 2016, where she qualified for a scholarship to study acting for film at the La Cinéfabrique University Lyon, France. Between 2016 and 2020, she appeared in Loop Count (screened at the British Film Institute London), To Love Again, Within Reach, Food, Love, or Both, and To Alice.

Her appearance as Pippa in Tinsel in 2017 opened Mena to a new audience and experience. It was also the start of her TV series career. However, before her big break came in 2020, she continued honing her craft on projects like Diary of The Damned, Within Reach, The Man Who Cuts Tattoos, and Akachi.

In 2020, she took on the role of ‘Queen Misan’ on the James Omokwe-produced 260-episode TV series Riona. In the series, she took on one of the lead roles, winning viewers’ hearts nationwide with her natural acting as the king queen of the wicked ‘King Ofotokun’. As Misan, she went from being a soldier’s wife, pregnant woman, grieving mom and widow, to a newly-married queen in a tumultuous polygamous family, the Ejoji (King’s sweetheart), head queen, and mother of the show’s protagonist (Tsema). She played every role to a tee, showing incredible range.

That role led her to more movies and TV series, including Africa Magic’s Original Film, Now That We Are Married, and Showmax’s first original animated series, Jay Jay: The Chosen One. Other movies she’s appeared in since 2020 include Juju Stories, A Chain Reaction, and The Hookup. She’s also appeared in several made-for-TV films on Africa Magic channels and Rok TV, all on DStv.

This year, especially in this last quarter, she has become the TV queen. The fast-rising star is currently a cast member on three TV shows simultaneously airing on Africa Magic Showcase. She’s ‘Halima Cole’ on Ripples: The New Generation, Ojoma (Akudiya) on Masquerades of Aniedo and ‘Abies’ on Love and Light. Once again, these roles help her display incredible range as she takes on different character profiles in each of them and delivers a natural performance across the board.

Mena is one of the fast-rising stars that Africa Magic is helping to popularize their faces on the silver screen.

Another actress that shares a similar history with Africa Magic is Tope Olowoniyan. The two rising stars started their careers on Tinsel and appeared on similar shows. They were co-wives in Riona, Friends on Now That We Are Married, and warring sisters on Ripples: The New Generation. As Mena Sodje continues to take over Nollywood one TV series at a time, it raises the question of how many more actors are building their careers and resumes via Africa Magic. Mena is on track to becoming one of the mega actresses to emerge from Nollywood.