Charles Novia “On A Mission To Save Majek Fashek”

Any child from the 80s of course will remember Majek Fashek quite well and many exciting attempts at sounding like the reggae star with repetitions, as a child, to the hook of his hit single ‘Send Down the Rain.’

For those who remember/were raised in Nigeria, join me in singing “mama mama mamayo, yaga yaga yagayo send down the rain!” LOL!

Fastforward to present and needless to say I was stunned to see the current state of Majek Fasek. He is the one pictured at the top of this article.

It seems this reporting correctly identifies Novia as the film producer of the aforementioned film. By the way, just some weeks ago, a story went viral that Footballer Jay-Jay Okocha was responsible for the aforementioned film. Novia was the least pleased,needless to say, and took to social media to set the record straight.

It is good to see the focus is back on the film, where it needs to be. AML people pay attention to the statements about film financing. This is one recurring theme in the film industry, that and distribution, where African films are concerned.

Nollywood producer, Charles Novia is poised to stir up the entertainment scene with the long-awaited film on legendary Nigerian reggae music star, Majekodunmi Fasheke, aka Majek Fashek.

Titled Majek the Rainmaker, the movie has been in the making for about two years. But Novia says that he is not under pressure to hasten its production.

“Although time is the major challenge that I am having at present, I am not worried that the production of the film is taking a long time to complete. I’m taking it in my stride because you cannot do a movie like this on a low budget. I believe that even as the production drags, the story will keep telling itself,” he says, in an interview with our correspondent.

The seasoned producer blames the delay in the production of the film on a number of factors. One of them is the global economic crisis of 2010, which prevented some interested sponsors from investing in the film.

A few logistic and technical hitches had also led to the temporary suspension of the production. But Novia declares, rather excitedly, that everything has finally been sorted out.

“Lately I managed to get a couple of investors in Los Angeles to inject funds in the movie. I will be travelling to the United State of America to shoot the final part of the movie very soon,” he says.

‘Majek the Rainmaker’ is being shot in three parts. The first part focuses on the early years of Majek Fashek in Benin City, where he was born. The second part deals with the beginning and the peak of his career as a music star. It includes his early days with the famous, but now defunct, reggae group known as the Jastix.

This period, the 1980s precisely, was the defining point in Majek’s career, which saw him playing alongside the likes of Ras Kimono and Amos McRoy and engaging in extensive tours with the Mandators before he left the Jastix to release the multiple-award winning album, Prisoner of Conscience. . .”

Source: PUNCH