My Stepmother Made Us Hawk Puff Puff, I Pretended To Be Blind And My Brother Begged For Money–Olayode

SportifypostMar 28, 2026Read original

Juliana Olayode, the beloved Nigerian actress widely known for her iconic role as Tobi in the hit television series “Jenifa’s Diary,” sat down with media personality Chude Jideonwo on the popular interview program “With Chude” to share a deeply raw and emotional account of the painful childhood experiences she endured under the care of her stepmother, revealing that she was forced to hawk goods on the streets as a young girl while her father was away from home during the week.

She explained that when her stepmother came into the household, life changed dramatically for her and her younger brother. They were sent out to sell puff puff and pure water on the streets daily, chasing vehicles and running after buyers just like the roadside hawkers she had seen all her life, an experience that robbed her of a normal childhood and exposed her to daily humiliation and uncertainty.

According to Juliana Olayode, she was sometimes unable to collect money owed by regular buyers who simply were not there when she returned, and this would trigger severe consequences from her stepmother. When one of those situations escalated badly, she and her brother devised a desperate plan on the streets, with Juliana pretending to be blind while her younger brother begged passersby for money to make up the shortfall.

She said: “My stepmother made me and my younger brother hawk on the streets. We were selling puff puff. We were selling pure water. You know how you see these guys on the street selling pure water and running after vehicles. My stepmother got upset that I kept coming back without all the money. She had said that if I don’t bring back all the money that day, I was not going to sleep in the house. So I told my brother, you know what, let’s just pretend like I’m blind. And then you beg. My brother was saying, please help us, my sister is blind. People gave, some people gave money, some did not.”