Lagos Fringe Festival 2025: Bunmi Awolowo’s “Mara” Overstays Its Welcome

While marriage remains a traditional institution even in modern times, many Nigerian cultures have conditioned women to believe they must marry before their “biological clock” runs out. The notion of a biological clock becomes a metaphor for the mounting pressure on women to get married before a socially prescribed age. This tension forms the backbone of Mara, a short film produced and directed by Bunmi Awolowo.  The film, which was screened on November 19th at the 2025 Lagos Fringe Festival, captures the silent struggles and weight of marital expectations placed on a woman.

Mara follows its titular character, a woman, almost thirty, who is desperate to get married. She faces pressure from her mother who takes her to a prophet that turns out to be a con artist. Months later, when she meets Jasper, a UK-based man, it feels like her dreams are coming true. Her friend’s advice to take things slowly falls on deaf ears. Mara’s desperation clouds her sense of judgement as she fails to notice the red flags in Jasper until it is a bit late.

The trouble with Mara is that it stretches its boundaries a little too far, both in its thematic focus and stylistic execution. Although the theme of marital desperation is relatable, it feels overflogged, especially in light of the increasingly unflattering statistics surrounding modern Nigerian marriages. A data-tracking platform reveals that in 1970, about 76.7% of Nigerian women of reproductive age were married, which dropped to 66.4% in 2024. Between 1985 and 2005, the rate dropped more significantly than in previous decades. Ultimately, these trends reveal a consistent decline in marriage among women over the past five decades. Several factors are responsible for this decline, ranging from educational to social, personal and economic ones.

With rising access to education and the expansion of the internet age, Nigerian women have become more informed about what constitutes a healthy romantic relationship and a fulfilling marriage. Today, it is increasingly common for women to marry in their late twenties or early thirties, especially when they prioritize career growth, financial independence, and emotional well-being. Mara seems to be out of tune with these trends in its projection of the modern spinster. What the film, however, gets right is its portrayal of the average young Nigerian as someone drawn to wealth and success or any semblance of it, without giving as much thought to character.

There is also a problem that arises with the short film running at a relaxed, lukewarm pace, as actions sluggishly build up and the narrative begins to feel as though it were a feature-length production. The film lacks the intensity and poetic candor of a short, with actions and dialogues laid out in full. Generally, because a short film has less time to impress, it should take its audience unawares, present a shocking revelation or bow out with an apt open-endedness that leaves the audience drawing logical inferences. Unfortunately, Mara is too self-indulgent to realize this.