‘Please don’t call me Tish’ − Thishiwe Ziqubu answers burning questions about his transition

Actor Thishiwe Ziqubu has opened up about his gender transition journey. He asked people to stop calling him Tish, her, or an actress. He also said that he gets misgendered a lot, and needed to correct that.

“Please don’t call me Tish. That is not my name. My name is Thishiwe. Please don’t call me girl or actress. I’m trans, and I’m an actor. Thanks,” he tweeted.

However, his plea was followed by many intrusive questions, which he also answered. The actor took the opportunity to educate people about transgender.

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“Mandisa is a woman, I am a trans man”

Some people also showed interest in the dynamics of his relationship with actress Mandisa Nduna. One follower asked: “Thishiwe…Out of respect but rather to understand. You once dated Mandisa, and you were the woman? Or where both of you trans? Just for clarity and to have an understanding of the LGBT community.”

He then clarified that Mandisa is a woman and he is a trans man.

The pair dated for almost four years before they called it quits in 2020. They both announced their split on Twitter. 

Mandisa tweeted: “It’s time❤️ Thishiwe and I have been broken up for a while now. I feel incredibly grateful for the past (almost) 4 years.”

Thishiwe also said he felt he needed to announce their break up because many people supported their relationship. They won the Cutest Couple of the Year at the ninth annual Feather Awards back in 2017.

“Beautiful people. Because you loved and supported us, we must let you know. Mandisa and I broke up a while back. It is a Love I will always treasure and honor, and all is good. ❤️”

Thishiwe addresses trolls

Thishiwe addressed trolls that left negative comments under his tweet. He said he could not believe that he was being shamed for asking people to address him correctly.

“As a friend of mine said, Twitter is not a real place. I can’t believe I was shamed for asking people to call me by my name. And I’m told I’m rude because people refuse to call me by my name.”

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