Nigerian actor Chidi Mokeme who is currently trending over his thrilling performance in critically acclaimed movie, ‘Shanty Town’, has revealed reason for his hiatus from acting.
Mokeme whose acting career spans more than two decades, said he took time off to recover from Bell’s palsy.
According to the actor, the medical condition is the reason for his extended absence from the industry.
The actor made the revelation in an interview with Channels TV.
He said he was diagnosed with the medical condition after the promotional tour for ’76’ and the cast were preparing to go for the Toronto International Film Festival in the UK.
Bell’s palsy is a condition that causes sudden weakness in the muscles on one side of the face. In most cases, the weakness is temporary and significantly improves over weeks.
The weakness makes half of the face appear to droop. Smiles are one-sided, and the eye on the affected side resists closing.
In most cases, Bell’s palsy is temporary, and symptoms usually go away within a few weeks or months.
Although Bell’s palsy can occur at any age, the condition is more common among people between ages 16 and 60.
Bell’s palsy is named after the Scottish anatomist Charles Bell, who was the first to describe the condition.
Mokeme had been absent from the public eye for a while, but he did appear in the January 20 Netflix film Shanty Town.
In the interview, the actor said: “After we did the promotional tour for ’76’ and we were preparing to go for the Toronto International Film Festival in the UK, I came down with something called Bell’s Palsy. That was the first time I was hearing it.
“It comes like a stroke and affects one side of the face. The doctors felt it was incurable because they didn’t know what causes it. Imagine what I dealt with as an actor coming down with something that affects your face.
“I thought I could manage it and thought to come for the Lagos premiere of ’76’ but the attention was focused on the face. I knew it wasn’t something I could work with. I took time off to sort out the problem.
“I focused on doing my other business while I was trying to get my face back. Do you see what happened to Justin Bieber right in the middle of his tour? You have to cancel everything. You can’t perform with your face drooping.”