Don’t Fuel Ghallywood, Kumawood Rivalry — Prince David

There has always been a perceived rivalry between the English movie section (Ghallywood) and their Twi speaking counterparts (Kumawood).

This perception received more fuel especially at a time Ghallywood’s fire seemed to be quenched and Kumawood was on the rise.

But award-winning actor, Prince David Osei says that perception has to be done away with since it doesn’t augur well for the growth of the movie industry in general.

In a chat with Showbiz last Friday, David said, “Truthfully, I don’t think there’s any rivalry or fight between Kumawood and us for supremacy in the movie industry.

Infact, I have acted in about four Kumawood productions and I know some of my colleagues such as Van Vicker have also done same.

“There’s a need to encourage such divisions within the industry especially when it is facing challenges.”
For the past five years, Ghallywood has faced a lot of challenges leading to its near collapse.

Its low moments, according to the 35-year-old actor, made Kumawood more popular. He, however, revealed that the fortunes of Ghallywood have been looking up since the beginning of the year.

“There’s no denying Ghallywood had its low moments but I can confidently say the situation is improving.

For instance, I’ve acted in about seven productions this year. The likes of Kobi Rana are shooting and that is good news,” he said.

Touching on what might have caused the ‘demise’ of English speaking movies, Prince David, who is widely known for the romantic roles he plays said in the past, most of the movies were love themed which over time bored their target audience.

“ At the beginning, it was all about love and romance and this got boring along the way. Now, the producers are exploring other areas like medicine, tradition, comedy and history so movie lovers have something new to watch.

The movie industry is getting better because they have learnt from their mistakes,” he said.

Ghallywood’s situation may appear to look better but can same be said of Kumawood which is also seemingly in the doldrums? David believes there could be a solution.

“It’s possible people are tired of the same storylines or even the insults associated with Kumawood.

Just as Ghallywood did its research and found solutions, the former should take a cue to find solutions to its problems.

“Their vibrancy is good for the growth of the industry and it is important we come together to make it work again, that is if it is truly dying as some Kumawood actors are saying,” he said.

Prince David Osei rose to fame in 2006 after starring in Fortune Island for which he later won the Best Actor of the Year at the City People Entertainment Awards.

He told Showbiz he will be releasing his new movie, American Hustlers featuring Nigeria’s Joseph Benjamin later in the year.