After a three-year sabbatical from the soapie world, Hlubi Mboya is making a comeback in e.tv’s Rhythm City. This time, she isn’t playing it “safe” either. Debashine Thangevelo got the lowdown on how the actress will be shaking things up as Thandeka Dandala…
THERE’S a new face on e.tv’s Rhythm City – and she is no stranger to South African viewers.
Hlubi Mboya became a household name as Nandipha Sithole, an HIV-positive domestic worker who found love as well as fame, on SABC3’s flagship soap, Isidingo.
In 2011, Mboya decided to chart new experiences on both the big and small screen. And her TV exit was perfectly timed, too, especially with the writers downsizing Isidingo’s Matabane family. Sechaba Moloi is the only Matabane to have survived the creative culling.
When Tonight got a hold of the actress on the Rhythm City set, a keyed up Mboya shouts: “I’m back on prime time television, baby!
“You know what? I have done stints on sitcoms for e.tv and SABC. I did international and local feature films. I was busy – just not on prime time television.
“Ten years on Isidingo was good enough. I needed to stretch myself as an actress. I don’t have kids yet. My priority is me, my husband and my career,” Mboya points out.
And, truth be told, Mboya is in fine form these days, too. Boasting a toned frame that belongs on the cover of Sports Illustrated, this head-turner is hungry to dive right back into the daily demands of early set calls, learning lines, rehearsals and gruelling camera takes.
She agrees that having carte blanche for three years certainly held its merits,but it isn’t for everyone, of course.
The 36-year-old notes: “I was able to open up avenues and recreate myself as a brand. I also tuned into my other passions, my charity work, my love for extreme sports. It was a good three years. It wasn’t consistent work. But I learnt so much about myself and what I wanted to do with my career, what kind of actress I wanted to be, what kind of roles I wanted to play; and, under what conditions I wanted to come back in the public’s visual eye. Now, I’m living the life (I want).”
Her timing couldn’t have been better as Nandipha’s shadow isn’t as omnipresent as before.
She nods: “It was rough for me – being typecast. My fans only identified with that role. And I knew that the character would circumvent anything that came right after. You have to give it time. You have to also give yourself and the audience time and for people to write you a refreshing new character.”
Mboya’s patience has paid off with the writing team at Rhythm City conceiving Thandeka Dandala.
She is the niece of Dwala “Doc” Dandala (played by Dumisani Mbebe), who has 50 shades of badass to him. Having usurped Miles Vilakazi at Redemption Records, he has been flexing those influential muscles.
She is brought in to help on the financial side of things. Having studied abroad, Thandeka is pioneering in her thinking, ambitious and headstrong. Her air of sophistication is matched by her charm and these talents prove to be indispensable to Doc.
On being given such a deliciously layered character, Mboya says: “It is my third day of shooting today. I’m still discovering her. But, overall, it’s like riding a bike, you never forget.
“My god, I was so hungry (for this). This is really something I’m committed to. There is so much room for growth. I was straight-up in telling the producers and directors, I don’t want to play it safe. And they listened. They were completely amazing. And I’m supported by a great cast.
“Leaving my comfort zone was a scary attempt… after a decade. But I love upsidedown… there is always an edge to my madness (laughs).”
Expanding on Thandeka, she reveals: “She is in the high-flying corporate space. She is Doc’s right hand at Redemption Records.”
On partnering with Mbebe for the first time, she praises: “We have a great rapport. We are the two new fish and there is a great energy.”
Now for every girls favourite subject – wardrobe. She says: “Oh honey, it is stunning. It is classy, chic, sexy, complements my skin tone. And I’m a fitness freak – so I told them to make good use of this body.”
Of course, conflict is the key ingredient and Thandeka finds herself engulfed in more than a few emotional storms.
Mboya offers: “She is a type-A personality by definition. She is passionate about people, the community and very protective of her family and her legacy. While she doesn’t know much about Doc’s shady dealings, she is still protective. They have a great yet strained relationship. In a sense, he uses her for business opportunities and she is emotionally captivated by her ‘dad’. She is the son he never had.”
On making her comeback, she maintains: “The timing couldn’t be better. It’s God’s timing. I’m so ready. Three years gave me a lot of time to think hard about what I want in my life, what kind of actress I want to be in South Africa and the globe. I got great perspective of my life as a whole; what I want and what I am willing to give for the life I want. I’m so ready. Time stands still for no one. And having the emotional intelligence about the present – it’s a good place to be in.”
By the by, Zolani (Melusi Mbele) doesn’t take too kindly to Thandeka’s presence. And so a cold war brews between the two…
WELCOME TO THE FAMILY
While Mboya is over the moon to be joining the Rhythm City clan, they are equally excited to have her.
Head writer Charlie Sapadin said: “We’re thrilled to be working with an actor of Hlubi’s calibre. We think she’ll bring in a fresh, new, dynamic element to the show as Thandeka. It’s quite a complex, layered character. She’s a good person who ends up doing questionable things because of the obligation she feels towards her uncle, Doc, mainly because he took her in when she had been abandoned by everyone else.
“These are the sort of characters we enjoy writing for because they reflect our own struggles and inner conflicts.”
By the way, Sapadin is married to Scandal actress Dawn Mathews (Shakira). Small world, eh?
• Hlubi Mboya will make her screen debut on e.tv’s Rhythm City on February 10.