Thandeka Nodada, nee Malinga, best known for her role as make-up artist Thuli in the SABC1 drama series Tshisa, popped into her alma mater on Monday, 22 July to offer pearls of wisdom to Kingsway drama students.
Thandeka, who matriculated in 2000, is on a tour to promote the release of ‘Uncovered’, an action movie about the mining industry she acted in and produced. “This is the first movie I’ve produced. I fell in love with producing and I’ve already started on a second one.” The movie was shot in Newcastle in a month, but it took her one-and-a-half years to put it together.
Thandeka grew up in KwaMakhutha and her family still live there. “My love for acting started at Kingsway. I’ve always known I wanted to be an actress. When I signed up to study drama at university, they said I needed to have a back-up plan, but I wasn’t interested.”
Fortunately for SA TV audiences, Thandeka chose the right path and she has appeared in A Place Called Home, Bay of Plenty, Erfsondes, Izoso Connexion and Mtunzini.com.
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She has been in theatre productions such as Medea, Grease, Showboat, You Strike a Woman, You Strike a Rock, Animal Farm and Loving Lulu, and TV commercials for Ricoffy, Finish dishwasher, MTN, Vodacom and Assupol. In corporate and industrial theatre, she has worked for IEC, South African Airways, BHP Billiton, Sun International and Edcon.
While appearing on Mtunzini.com, she was offered the role of Thuli. “My shooting schedule on Tshisa is flexible but long hours. I can shoot three to five days a week, depending on the scenes, and from 6.30am to 6.30pm. The good part is we are fed breakfast, lunch and supper.”
On set Thandeka met her husband Zuko, who directed the movie, and the pair married three years ago. They have three children – Atsho,19, Zuko’s son, Nosanda, 12, and Likum, 4.
In her free time she loves travelling. “No matter what, I save to go on holiday once a year and I switch my phone off. This year I am going to Mauritius. I have been to Paris, Belguim and Thailand. I also went to Los Angeles and London to promote Uncovered and we are going to Montana and Canada soon to show the movie at film festivals. The people we have shown it to have loved it and there has been some interest for sales overseas.”
Uncovered opens at Musgrave and Pavilion on 30 August.
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