It was a big day for Kemi “Lala” Akindoju and her groom, Chef Fregz this past weekend. Although they kept the wedding plans private, it was well attended by some of Nollywood biggest names who had come to celebrate one of their own, as well as the celebrity chef.
The traditional nuptials held on Sunday in Lagos. In attendance were A-List celebs such has Adesua Etomi and her husband Banky W, Rita Dominic, Ireti Doyle, Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde and many others.
However, one main person was conspicuously absent: Kemi’s erstwhile best friend, actor OC Ukeje.
In 2014 when Ukeje got married, Kemi Lala stole the spotlight as she played the role of ‘best man’, complete with matching ties and native attire. The two had been friends for nearly a decade and defied gender roles by including her in the bridal party, in a part traditionally played by a man.
Before then, their friendship was well known in the film and theatre circles and they were often seen attending events together. Akindoju once described Ukeje in an interview as her ‘ride or die’.
Therefore it was surprising when on Lala’s big day, her ‘ride or die’ friend was nowhere to be found. Although since he got married, OC Ukeje has shuttled between Nigeria and Canada where his wife is based, fans expected him to show up in support.
NET can confirm why the actor was conspicuously missing: the relationship between the two has strained in the last few years.
A well-placed source close to the two of them revealed to us that since Ukeje got married, Kemi has been constrained to maintain a distance between them and gradually the friends have grown apart.
“Obviously you were not expecting that they would still remain close friends after he got married. Some women could have issues with their husbands maintaining a close friendship with a woman. They’re not enemies but it’s no longer a friendship like that,” our source said.
The source went further, “It says enough that he didn’t post photos on his Instagram page on a day that his friend broke the internet, even if it was going to be hard for him to come to Lagos on the day.”
The news of the wedding caught fans unawares as it wasn’t even known that the two were dating. With the state of their friendship, it is not clear that OC Ukeje knew that it was happening anyway.
At time of filling this report, he had yet to send her any public wishes on social media; his last Instagram post was five days ago.