The actress tells BBC Yoruba that dark-skinned and slim actresses struggled to get cast, and that the bleaching left her skin vulnerable to injuries on set.
Habibat Jinadu says she bleached her skin in order to win movie parts, as dark-skinned and slim actresses found it tough to get work in the film business. She made the claim in an interview with BBC Yoruba, reported on 29 October 2026.
Jinadu told BBC Yoruba why she made the change:
"I bleached my skin because if you were dark-skinned, then you would not get a role. Also, if you were not chubby but slim, you would not get a role."
Directors, she said, gave preference to fair-skinned and chubby actresses during the period she was making her name. She also said that every time filming lights were switched on, a director would tell her she was too dark.
She decided to act on it. "So, I went ahead, bleached my skin and started expecting to get roles. And indeed, I started getting roles," she said.
The change in her complexion came with a cost off screen. "But people could not recognise me any longer." She said that when she stepped out to buy something, people would say she looked familiar or like an actress.
"I was not happy with it, but I kept on pushing," she said.
On movie sets, she began to suffer for it. She said the bleaching left her skin vulnerable, so minor bruises turned into injuries and skin tears.
The reality became clear to her in 2023, when she got pregnant. "It all dawned on me when I got pregnant in 2023. And when you are pregnant, you cannot bleach your skin," she said.
Stopping brought a new problem. "When I eventually stopped, people started abusing me and calling me all sorts of names," she added.
Specialists in health have repeatedly cautioned about how risky some creams that lighten the skin can be.
Back in 2024, during an appearance on Biola Bayo's podcast Talk To B, Jinadu described comparable episodes, claiming she had been subjected to demeaning remarks about her dark skin tone while on a film set.
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