One of the developments the social media spawned as a vehicle of information dissemination in northern Nigeria was the emergence of news outlets that operate outside the norm. Many of them are located in popular applications such as Facebook and Instagram. They may be regarded as “one-man show” and operate without formal structure such as office space, unfiltered or even a known address, but they tend to prove effective in conveying the news, especially to those that follow them.
Kannywood Exclusive is one such outlets, albeit with a difference. A popular bilingual platform, it is recognised for breaking news, updates, reports and trending matters in the Hausa film industry famously known as Kannywood. The young man behind it, Isah Bawa Doro, says he created it “in order to disseminate accurate, authentic and reliable information for the interest of Kannywood fans and followers so that they can be able to be acquainted with the situations and conditions of the actors/actresses.”
The outlet has hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram and Facebook, most of whom are fans of Hausa film industry.
There are many other Kannywood-related online outlets in the social media, but Kannywood Exclusive stands out to be the leading one in terms of followership due to its long years of existence, popularity and reputation. Moreover, Doro, the head of this enterprise, maintains a cordial relationship with Hausa actors and actresses and as such he always attends their ceremonies, activities and film shooting locations.
Buoyed by its apparent crowd-pulling success, Doro has begun to establish a recognisable structure for his enterprise, opening an office in the city of Katsina, where he is based, and recruiting staf. Our correspondent, ALIYU ASKIRA, has interviewed Doro about his company. Excerpts:
Why did you establish Kannywood Exclusive?
DORO: I initiated Kannywood Exclusive in order to gather and disseminate authentic and reliable information concerning the Hausa film industry. When we started, there were some counterfeit pages whose motive was spreading false news about Hausa artistes and unfortunately some readers couldn’t understand that the mediums were fake. Consequently, we decided to establish our firm so as to quench our people’s thirst for breaking news about actors and films, as well as related matters, like analysis of the film industry.
When did you establish the page?
DORO: It was created in 2013, but it was in 2015 that people got to know more about it, and then we got more followers.
Which type of news do you mostly bring?
DORO: We bring gossips and gist going on in Kannywood. We try as much as we can to bring new updates, most especially about trending events within the industry, whether good or otherwise.
In which way does Kannywood Exclusive make an impact on artistes and the viewers?
DORO: To be candid with you, I can say that Kannywood Exclusive is the biggest and most sought after Hausa film information disseminator at the moment. Because, if you are following our social media handles, you will find out that thousands of people appreciate what we do and we used to be the first to break news about most of the new films produced in the industry and viewed at the Film House Cinema, Kano. The producers trust us, and that is why they pay us to advertise their films so that it can reach millions of people worldwide.
What challenges have you faced so far?
DORO: The challenges we normally face is that whenever we report news that an artiste or film maker doesn’t like or is not comfortable with, they call us on phone to complain about it and express their unhappiness. And we all know that if you are into journalism, in one way or the other someone may not be happy with your work and some may perhaps misunderstand you, but others definitely understand and appreciate our work. However, this doesn’t stop us, it is our motivation for we know that our message is being passed where it’s supposed to be.
What can you say about the success you have achieved so far?
DORO: So far so good, I can say. Alhamdu lillah, because from our day one till date our followers have been multiplying and we have never had a time when our numbers went down. Today, even companies outside the film industry pay us to advertise and promote their products and services via our handles on Instagram, Facebook, Website, Twitter, and YouTube. Thus, as a result of our tremendous contribution and excellent service delivery, we were nominated for merit awards on several occasions, out of which we have won six: Multipurpose Award Season 2, Arewa Ku Tashi (2nd Annual), 1st Read Right Merit Award, African Entertainment Award, ABB Nigeria Limited Lagos Special Merit Awards, etc.
What do you aim to achieve as a company?
DORO: Our focus is to be better than who we are today. We wish to be among the biggest media firms in the whole country and expand our services beyond the boundaries of thr Hausa film industry in such a way that when our sites, handles and pages are viewed one will find news concerning day to day live activities in most human endeavours such as politics, sports, commerce and so on, not entertainment alone. So, we thank the almighty Allah for His blessing and guidance. And I am very pleased to inform you that this year, 2020, we are going to have our TV station and online radio for broadcasting of both audio and video updates. They will be launched simultaneously with our office of operation in Katsina city by the special grace of God.
