Sunninghill resident stars in most profound role yet
FOURWAYS – Read about which new role Sunninghill resident and actress, Nambitha Ben-Mazwi is playing in series, Madiba.
Sunninghill resident and actress, Nambitha Ben-Mazwi, received the opportunity to work alongside American actors, Laurence Fishburne and Orlando Jones in a recently short series, Madiba.
Lady Nam, as she is known in the industry, took her career to a whole new level in the role of Nandi in the series and described her current career level as her most profound role to date.
When asked how it was filming the series alongside Mark Elderkin, Orlando, David Harewood and Jones, the 27-year-old actress said, “I worked closely with Laurence Fishburne and Orlando Jones and it was not difficult to be charmed by them both, but what I particularly loved was how real, open and honest our conversations were, on and off the set,” Ben-Mazwi expressed.
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Ben-Mazwi explained that having lived in New York City, she immediately had a bond with Fishburne and Jones as she felt she understood them.
“We connected on an artist level, a human level and we often engaged in dinner party talks where we all learnt from each other. I particularly liked that about them as often, established stars with years of experience often ‘know it all’, but as much as I was a sponge with them, they too were a sponge with me,” she quipped.
When asked what people can expect from her character, Ben-Mazwi said she plays a small, yet one of her most profound roles to date, which is an 18-year-old girl called Nandi.
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“Nandi’s story plays true to many everyday stories that women faced during the apartheid era. She is in love with her fiance, Welcome, a man caught between a rock and a hard place seeking the law expertise from Oliver Tambo and Nelson Mandela. The character then later goes through a traumatic experience alongside Nelson Mandela that tests a very raw, dark and emotional place for me as an actor,” Ben-Mazwi said.
The local actress added that the series was particularly important to her in terms of capturing raw, real and vulnerable footage as she is born from a family which was politically active during apartheid. “My uncle, actor and playwright veteran, Winston Ntshona used his talent alongside John Kani and Athol Fugard to put on plays around the world as a form of protest during apartheid. I later saw them win a Broadway Tony Award. I am strongly influenced by these two people in my family.
“Playing a role that was close to my heart from my experiences during the turbulent times, I had to tap into raw moments from my past, my family’s past and use that to make my difference through telling Nandi’s story.”
According to the actress, the message she wants viewers to take out of the series and embrace is, that our [country’s] pain and past does not define us. “We have a choice in life, always, and it is up to us which choices we make in moving forward and leaving a legacy for the future.”
The series’ release date has not been revealed as yet.
