allure 28 June 2020

ONYEKACHI
UCHEAGWU
Finding Love On Screen
Onyekachi Ucheagwu is a 32-year-old serial
entrepreneur from Imo State who came
into the Ultimate Love reality TV show, more to
find love than to win the money. But the odds
were on his side as he left Aunty’s Love Pad
with both a grand prize and a partner, Rosie.
With his deep love for his culture and
tradition, Kachi, as he is fondly called in the
house, found a woman that complements all
that in the person of Rosie and in their 8
weeks together in Aunty Love Pad, they
uncovered things about themselves and
unlearned things together.
What motivated you to come to a reality TV show in
search of love?
As cliche as it sounds, I was motivated by the idea of
finding true love. I entered the Love Pad with an open
heart as an individual to find genuine and unconditional
love. Someone I could spend the rest of my life with.
As an Igbo man who is highly cultural, did Ultimate
love provide the right environment or you had to align
yourself to its culture?
My culture does not have anything to do with where I
choose to find love. The Igbo nation is liberal and consider
everyone irrespective of your tribe as one. As such, I will
forever remain grateful to MultiChoice for giving me the
platform to find the woman of my dream
What attracted you to Rosie in the house? Would you
say she was your ideal kind of partner before the
show?
She was and still is (Laughs). I knew Rosie was the
one from the onset of the show. During our first speed
date in the Love Pad, I just knew that she was exactly
what I was looking for and then, she shared a secret she
had never discussed with anyone and that really built my
trust for her because it was obvious she was willing to let
go and trust me.
How did your experience in your previous
relationships help your relationship with your partner
in Aunty’s Love Pad?
Before the show, I’d had to deal with a lot of
disappointment and heartbreaks in my relationships. So, I
was also very careful from the start not to make another
mistake. I’m grateful to God that things worked out with
Rosie. I’m at peace knowing that this one is really and
truly mine.
Before Rosie, what was your thought on dating older
women and how has that thought evolved since your
relationship in the house?
Dating older women has never been my thing. But
after the first week of bonding in the Love Pad, coupled
with intelligent conversations we had, and different
lectures we had, the whole narrative and my perspective
changed. I got to realize that age is nothing but numbers.
There and then, I made up my mind not to sacrifice my
happiness at the altar of “age”. I love Rosie so much,
that’s what matters.
On entering the house, what was a strategy you had
to win the game and were you ever able to use it?
So, entering the house, I was more about finding love
than getting a strategy to even win. So, I didn’t really have
any particular strategy and to be honest, winning the show
came to me as a surprise. I wasn’t expecting it. But I’m
grateful to God for making it possible.
How did you feel being in a house with so many
couples? Did that environment help or affect your
relationship negatively?
Hmmm… I don’t think it had any adverse effect on our
relationship. The opposite was actually the case because
while we were focused on working on our relationship, we
were also surrounded by other couples who were
navigating theirs. So and such an environment helped us
learn from one another.
Describe a memorable time you had in the house with
Rosie and why is it special?
wow… they are innumerable. Starting from the games
we both played together in the house, to various
interesting conversations around spending eternity and
building a family together. Also, when I made an Italian
meal (Italian Puttanesca). The interesting thing about it
was she finished the meal and asked for more, and I was
so happy.
Having a public relationship on a reality TV show like
Ultimate Love, what were some of the fears you had
and how did you navigate your emotions and
thoughts to alleviate those fears?
INTERVIEW
Fear? I don’t think I had any and that’s because I
knew what I was going in for. So that helped me navigate
the challenges that came with falling in love and
navigating a new relationship in front of the cameras.
Going into the house, was the end game to win no
matter what or find love even without the prize and
how do you feel having both?
For me, the end game was to find true love, not
winning. I feel very grateful to God for making all this
happen
If you have to do something all over again in the
house, what’s that one thing you’ll do differently?
Not a thing. I believe everything happes for a reason,
and all my actions in the Love Pad led me to Rosie.
Coming out of the house, what was your first reaction
to the new reality of COVID-19?
It was crazy! But the good thing though was that, the
organisers of the show had briefed us on what to expect,
and they also took great measures to ensure we were
safe upon our exit from the Love Pad.
Cover Photo credit
Rosie’s Dresses by Makioba @makiobaofficial
Kachi’s White Suit Caesarcouture @caesarcouture
Sequined suit & Purple suit Lisk @liskofficial
Styled by Rhoda Ebun @rhodaebun For
RTFCompany @rtfcompany
Photography: Bernard Okulaja
Hairstyling: Jordan Olu
Makeup: Ambassador Gorgeous
June 28, 2020 / 5