ACTOR AINEA OJIAMBO TALKS ABOUT FAMILY, ACTING, THE SHOOTING INCIDENT AND WORKING WITH LUPITA NYONG’O

Celebrated actor Ainea Ojiambo, alias OJ has opened up about his acting career and his experience working with Hollywood actress Lupita Nyong’o. In an interview with Buzz Central’s Cheptoek Boyo, the actor said he got into acting by emulating his uncle, Othorong’ong’o. “My father is an actor but he is an economist, my uncle who people know as Othorongongo follows my father and that’s where the acting bite came from. It is Othorongongo who made me to really want to act,” he said. 

OJ also discussed his experience working in a Hollywood set, “It was a good experience working in Constant Gardner set, Ralph Fieness’s tent was next to mine and believe it or not, my P.A was Lupita Nyong’o, that’s why we are still friends because she came in as a P.A to assist us.  I knew her from Phoenix and we have kept our friendship although sometimes we don’t meet when she comes around,” he noted. 

The actor also spoke about his venture into the security sector, disclosing that he got interest in security after being contracted to protect an international beer brand ambassador Michael Powers. “When I was in college I used to be a bouncer and I also used to be the person in charge of Michael Power’s security and that’s where I learnt about security. I was later taught the basics and I also trained with Recce. I started going out to Poland and I trained with the Mexico Anti-drug Cartel, the FBI, Eastern European Special Forces and my first job was a private military contractor. I went back two years ago to do counter-terrorism,” said OJ.

On family matters, Ojiambo spoke on his relationship with his kids, revealing that his son has been in Europe for over three years, while his daughter lives in Kenya. “I have two kids, a son and a daughter, I feel pity for my son because I wanted him to live my life so he had it really rough because I didn’t want him to speak in Sheng or Swahili and I took him to the best schools. When he turned 18 I threw him to Europe and he has been in Europe for three years so for him it was crazy because I wanted him to live the life I didn’t live,” he said. “My daughter she is more demanding because she’s a daddy’s girl, she wants to see me most of the time and really spends your money but it’s good.” 

Without divulging a lot of information, the actor spoke on his shooting incident maintaining that he was protecting himself after being accosted by armed thugs. “It was just thugs who thought I was a soft guy and they were attacking me and naturally I had to protect myself. If I wouldn’t protect myself, they would have taken away my gun, shot me and we would be having one bad gun in the hands of bad people,” he noted.  

OJ also talked about his love for gold, disclosing how he was conned when he bought his first gold chain. “I love gold because when I was young that’s when I came across gold I used to put in some ivory and my first gold chain I bought I was conned. I bought from the streets for Sh20,000 and when I took shower, it became silver and from that time I decided when I want gold I go to the goldsmith and that’s where I go to buy all my gold,” he said.  

He went ahead to disclose that he wears jewellery worth more than Sh1 million, further explaining why he decided to invest his money in gold. “That chain they wanted to rob me is worth Sh400,000, what I walk on me is more than Sh1 million; the chains, bracelets, rings. The two rings one is Sh150,000 and the other is Sh170,000, my bracelet is Sh80,000. People invest in gold, why? I can put the money in land but now look the way property has gone down and in case there is a problem you cannot run with your land. When you go out gold has only two languages, how many grams and the karats,” he said.