A gripping new telenovela, Uzalo, enters its second week on SABC1 since it hit the air waves on February 9.
Uzalo is entirely set and shot in KwaMashu township, north of Durban.
The drama sees two families pitted against each other: the Mdletshes, headed by pastor Melusi Mdletshe (Bheki Mkhwane), who are the church stronghold and moral core of the community and the Xulus, with Muzi Xulu (Mpumelelo Bhulose) heading the household, who are invested in a crime empire.
Dealing with issues of family loyalties and personal ambitions, Uzalo homes in on these families, their success and what sets them off.
Tonight spoke to Bhulose about his role as the notorious Muzi Xulu – a role which is this real-life KwaMashu man’s dream character.
“As a man who grew up KwaMashu, I think the story that Uzalo offers is fantastic. With me it’s more about the relevance of the character. Initially, I auditioned for the role of the pastor, but I said I wanted the role of the gangster because I understood where the character would go. I wanted this role because it is real to me,” he said.
Muzi Xulu is a self-made man. Growing up in an abusive home forced him onto the streets where he fine-tuned his basic knowledge of cars and learnt more about stripping and stealing them. He evolved into the high-jacking kingpin that he is today. But as Bhulose explains, Muzi is not to be confused with your typical gangster.
“He is charming and smart and actually a really loving guy towards his family. His softness you will find only when he is with his family because that is where you see the crux of who he is. But when he gets to work it’s something totally different, very hard core, down to business,” he explains.
“What made me fall in love with this character is that we’ve never really seen a gangster character like this, especially in our black communities, and the roles we are given for television. We always see gangsters being hard core at work and home. But I know real gangsters who are not like that.
“For once the world is going to see gangsters in a different light through Muzi. The brothers, when they are out there, are really hard core, but when they come home it’s another story and even their wives can wrap them around their little finger and get away with it,” he laughs. “So it’s that kind of dimension that I love about this role and I’m still wanting to grow into it. I think there is still so much that Muzi can bring to this project and Mpumelelo Bhulose can also bring life into the character of Muzi,” he said.
Bhulose said that Uzalo gives KwaMashu a chance to shine and to be known beyond the stereotypical troubled township image we often see in the media.
“In the post-apartheid era every township had its history. There is no township today that doesn’t have its ups and downs. But there is a lot of good about KwaMashu which we don’t hear about. Now we have a chance to actually showcase that.” he said.
Written by Duma Ndlovu, Uzalo is produced by Gugulethu Ncube and Pepsi Pokane. It also stars Leleti Khumalo, Khumbulani Sibiya and Naymaps Maphala.
• Uzalo airs Monday to Wednesday at 8.30pm
Putting KwaMashu on the map...
From ghetto fabulous to small-screen star, here are a few facts about KwaMashu:
• KwaMashu has a notable and lively performing arts and leisure scene. Prominent achievements include the eKhaya Multi Arts Centre for Arts and Performance and community radio station Vibe 94.70 FM.
• Famous people who hail from KwaMashu include Henry Cele, Leleti Khumalo, Tu Nokwe, Zakes Bantwini, the soon-to-be-relaunched Avante gospel group, Deborah Fraiser, Siyabonga Nomvethe and more.
• Popular arts events hosted annually in KwaMashu include the Tops at Spar KwaMashu Wine and Lifestyle Festival, the KwaZulu-Natal African Film Festival and the Isigcawu Theatre Festival.
• The development of KwaMashu resulted from the mass resettlement of the slum population of Cato Manor during the period 1958 to 1965.
• KwaMashu has been grouped with its neighbouring townships Inanda and Ntuzuma and together they are referred to as INK (Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu) by the eThekwini Municipality. Collectively the INK area is home to about 500 000 people. – Information from Wikipedia.org; sahistory.org.za; ulwazi.org
• The Uzalo team have not only converted a massive warehouse in the Riverhorse Valley precinct (north of Durban) into a fully-fledged studio and set – much of which is based on actual properties in the community like the church and pastor’s home – but they also rent these properties from the community for use as location sites. The team have also converted former derelict buildings into locations sites, like the chop shop in the show.