Brenda Yufeh
23 April 2008
Miranda, Barbarita, Ricarda, Anthony, Alexandra! Nowadays, these are names that create commotion and animate discussion when they are being mentioned. These names belong to some of the main characters in Soap Operas (La Mujer de Mi Vida, Destins Croisés) being screened on television channels in the country, and the characters which have immersed impact on the population be it socially or economically. Individuals, particularly youths do not only copy the dressing style of these characters but also use their names for commercial purposes.
Given that professionals (producers) have culturally sensitive radio and television soap operas to motivate people to adopt new attitudes and behaviours through their serial, those concerned with the production of "Destins Croisés" have a great deal to write back as far as the population of Cameroon, particularly Yaounde is concerned. This time around the name "Miranda" calls for attention at market places. Some days back down town Yaounde, the attention of several individuals was drawn when a hawker moved around with bonbon which he had named "Miranda". As he went through the nooks and crannies of Yaounde, shouting "Bonbon Miranda! Bonbon Miranda!", so too was the population interested in buying the sweets many people believed is being eaten by Miranda.
The population has not only turned to identify themselves with actors/actress in different Soap Operas but also wear dresses that carry their names or fashioned after the actors. In this light, cloth producers as well as tailors have taken advantages of this to make brisk business. Recently, many tailors embarked on sewing a particularly transparent blouse made of light fabric. The style of the blouse, modelled after the dresses worn by Miranda. It is also common nowadays to see dresses that carry the names of these characters. Producers and traders in cloth say their names mean profit since many people come around for dresses that identify their image or names. This is why recently at the Mvog-Atangana Mballa market in Yaounde, buyers; particularly youths formed a crowd around the road because they were attracted by the dress which carried the name Miranda! The fact that these serials are changing people's way of dressing, to see young girls dressed with their stomach and back all exposed seem not to raise eyebrows as people believe it is "en-vogue". This is how "Stars" dress nowadays.
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