Former Muvhango actress Phindile Gwala has dismissed claims that she was initially fired from Imbewu.
The thespian, known as the feisty and go-getter Fikile on etv’s weekday soapie, mysteriously left the show shortly after her storyline revealed that she wrecked her brother’s marriage and played fiancé to her own blood – this was revealed as she went through the pain of trying to unde stand why she could not bear children.
She is now back, even more ruthless than before. She says the old Fikile fans can expect more drama from the character.
Addressing claims that she was fired, Gwala said she was on a 10-month leave because she “chose to”, and claimed the Imbewu producers had put the paid leave on the cards before the character was put to script.
“People should just ask themselves why I am back if I was not on good terms with the producers. I was called by the producers and the writers, and they said there was a beautiful story, before they even wrote the story, and wanted me to be involved. Imagine, people who hate me.
“They explained what they wanted the character to go through and because of what she is going through, they said they will give me a break, and it would be a paid leave from the end of the season, and I would come back the following season,” says Gwala.
She says she was excited to take the deal considering it was shot in Durban and she wanted to do a few things in Johannesburg. She says she agreed to the offer long before she got off-screen because everything was properly explained to her.
“I got too deep into the character and it was showing. I was so sick because I had to go through what she was going through. They would even ask me if I was okay or if I would like to take days off. This is because they saw how much that storyline meant to me and how much I was into the storyline.
“For people, I had a conflict with or whatever people call it, they wouldn’t have done that. I also wouldn’t have given in. I did research about endometriosis and went to hospitals for research,” she says.
Gwala is now juggling a busy schedule as she simultaneously shoots for uZulu noMhlaba, a new maskandi show on Mzansi Magic. She will be playing MaNdlovu, whom she describes as a fiery and heartless woman in the circle.
“MaNdlovu is a king, a very interesting person. She’s ruthless and a fighter who hardly smiles. She’s far removed from what I’ve played before.
“I like them [Fikile and MaNdlovu] because I like doing challenging things. So, switching between characters hasn’t been easy but that is what I like about it. MaNdlovu is just very different from Fikile and sometimes I would have to shoot with Imbewu and in the evening shoot with uZulu noMhlaba. Imagine switching between two characters in one day. Wow, you must be a genius,” she says.
For the latest entertainment news from Sunday World, click here.
Or read the latest from Shwashwi here.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa. To Subscribe to Sunday World, click here.
