John Kani

‘I was supposed to be in Paris soon on some business and then would’ve headed to Austria. In June I was hoping to launch my next play, but all that has been put on hold,” said an excited Dr John Kani.

The man who has made a name for himself in the arts locally and abroad is happy to have another of his ideas produced. Before you jump to conclusions, it is not another theatre production; instead Inkaba is Mzansi Magic’s latest addition to their growing portfolio.

“We are producing a telenovela called Inkaba for Mzansi Magic. Though I came up with the original idea, I am being assisted to develop it by Portia Gumede, Harry Hofmeyer and Herbert Hadebe,” said Kani.

Though many people are not used to seeing him on TV as he prefers to push theatre productions, Kani understands the medium very well.

“I have been on the Urban Brew board for many years and assisted with the artistic evaluation of the various shows that were pitched to the production company.

“You may be interested to know that eight years ago I hatched a TV show idea based on an old Xhosa radio show and to date Khumbul’ Ekhaya is one of the biggest shows on TV in this country,” he said.

Like me, you probably didn’t know that, but what we do know is that what Kani touches turns into gold. This is why the news of the telenovela comes as a pleasant surprise to a population starved of quality viewing.

“A telenovela is a story that’s like a soapie, but it has a beginning, middle and an end,” he explained.

“Inkaba is about a feud between two South African families. They have been fighting for years, from one generation to the next. It’s like those typical feuds you have in rural KwaZulu-Natal where, after a while, you do not even know why you are fighting,” he said.

When the idea came about, Kani said about 30 parties had also pitched their ideas to Mzansi Magic so he didn’t expect to win the spot.

“They called to say that while they were considering us, only one thing would seal the deal: they asked me to be both executive producer and principal actor in the production,” he said.

“Well, I really wanted us to win the pitch, so what else was I to do but concede?” he joked.

As executive producer and actor, Kani has to juggle his roles for the next year that he’s tied to the project: “We were commissioned to do 208 episodes and the show will be airing from Mondays to Thursdays.

“We have had new studios built for this show at Urban Brew’s premises. About 500 people have been working on this production so I hope President Zuma realises just how much the arts contribute to the development of the country,” Kani says.

• Inkaba premieres on March 19 on Mzansi Magic at 8.30pm.

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