British born Actress Bukky Bakray has said she hopes that people see the “beauty in life” as she was named winner of the EE Rising Star award at the Bafta film awards.
She got her big break starring in 2019 coming-of-age drama Rocks, where she plays a British-Nigerian schoolgirl called Shola – ‘Rocks’ to her mates – who faces a tumultuous coming-of-age journey when her mother disappears.
Bakray was born in Hackney, East London to Christian Nigerian parents and grew up on an estate in Lower Clapton near where Rocks was filmed. She has three brothers and a sister who lives in South Africa.
The award is the only one to be voted for by the public, and previous winners include James McAvoy, Noel Clarke, Kristen Stewart and Tom Hardy.
Bakray was one of five nominees alongside Kingsley Ben-Adir, Morfydd Clark, Sope Dirisu and Conrad Khan.
Speaking after her win, Bakray said: “I hope that viewers see the beauty in the mundane experience and they see the beauty in life and human beings as people.
“I think when you look at Rocks’ narrative, it’s not flashy, it’s not crazy, there’s no guns, there are no stunts, there is no this and that.
“Even though I love films that have that, this film is really minimalistic. It really focuses on life and human nature and humanity.
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