When Nigerian movie industry otherwise known as Nollywood, kicked off about twenty years ago, themes of witchcraft, ritualism and greed that dominated some of the early movies.

Today, the practice has shifted and lovers of the country’s films are helplessly being compelled to watch obscene movies which promotes immorality and cultures that are alien to us as Africans.

Indeed, recent survey has shown that pornographic movies are increasingly taking over Nollywood. Ardent followers of the recent development in the industry would have noticed the disturbing increase in the degree of nudity portrayed in some of the recent Nollywood flicks.

Regrettably, Nollywood actors have thrown caution to the wind as they now venture into hard core pornographic roles. The internet, ‘YouTube’, is not helping matters as it is one avenue frenquently used by these desperate, and ‘materialistic’ soft-pron producers to gain wide popularity for such obscene movies.

Until recently, the production of soft-porn movies only thrives in Ghana. They were considered bold enough to engage in sexually suggestive roles. This, however, paved the way for the popularity of Ghollywood movies in the country, as Nigerians, out of curiosity, patronized Ghanaian films just to see how far they were willing to go with this obscenity. But today, the story has changed. Nollywood practitioners who have been very conservative when it comes to displaying sex and nudity on screen, are now leading the way with the production of pornographic movies.

Some of the soft-porn movies that have flooded the Nigerian and African markets in the past few years include The Benjamins, Greedy Sex, Room 027, Another Game of Men, Bold 5 Babes, Bedroom Assassins , All My Ladies, My Pretty Angel, Take My Wife (Pretty Wild Things), Pool Party and I slept with My Boss’s Wife.

Interestingly, the production of gay movies too are also on the increase. Last year, popular producer Dickson Iroegbu, released a gay movie, “Law 58” which starred Kanayo O. Kanayo, who played the lead character, Clarion Chukwurah, Halima Abubakar, Ghanaian actor, Kofi Adjorlolo, Mark Morris, Chibueze, and other Nollywood stars. Also, gay movies like, Pregnant Hawkers, Sinful Act 1&2 and also a Yoruba movie, titled, “Lesbian” were also released into the market.

Still on soft-porn movies, the most recent of these hardcore porn movies is “Destructive Instincts”, produced recently and starring Nigerian born American actress cum producer, Judith Opara Mazagwu popularly known as Afro Candy. In the movie, Afro Candy played the role of a seductive mistress; with a steamy sex scene where a male actor was grappling her bare breasts and buttocks.

Her boldness and unrepentant attitude about her act was attested to when she took to her facebook page asking for actors who could act nude roles and are interested in being a part of her production to get in touch with her.

Shortly after the noise about Afrocandy and the lewd scenes, another soft-porn movie, “The “Benjamins” surfaced with its trailer. The movie produced by Charles Smooth X Edegbe and directed by Temple Chinedum is a high class campus movie based on rap music and love. According to some critics, the movie isn’t worth releasing because it was a sheer display of obscenity and mediocrity.

However, it is on record that soft porn movies started flooding Nigerian movie markets about two years ago, when controversial actress, Tonto Dike starred in “Strippers in Love”, a soft-porn movie produced by Divine Touch Productions. Scenes from the movie showed Tonto kissing another female cast and x-rated scenes with another actor. She had earlier starred in “Dirty Secrets.”

Apparently, with these kinds of unholy movies dominating the Nigerian movie space, questions are being asked today regarding the future of Nollywood. Many people are of the opinion that the current trend which must be discouraged remains a degradation of values that we hold as Africans.

•Credit (except headline and photo): Saturday Vanguard.