Close curtains. Lights out. It’s a wrap for veteran actress Murabeli Rasalanavho.
Rasalanavho has been on a rollercoaster ride as Vho-Mukondeleli, one of the original cast members of Muvhango since its inception in 1997, and was seen taking her last breath on set last week.
The 72-year-old recalls her days before joining the cast as nerve-wrecking yet exciting moments to have an opportunity to be on television, yet she already had full-time job as a teacher.
Rasalanavho took Sunday World down memory lane, back 25 years ago when she was called for an audition. She recalls when she was given a script written in both Tsonga and English, she had read the script in Tsonga but was asked to change it to Venda – and this is when her dreams came true.
“As I finished my lines, the crew laughed and that had me worried because this must mean that I messed up. I didn’t even realise that the whole dialogue between myself and the lady behind the counter was being filmed by cameras behind me. Turns out the directors liked me and called me for a second audition and it went on this way until I was called to come back with my dress size,” she said.
Although she was already over the moon at the thought of being a TV star, she said it was not an easy beginning. The team did not have appropriate clothing for her character (Nwenda) and she was asked to bring her own wardrobe. As she was driving to a shoot in Tshidzivhe village in Limpopo, the wardrobe van fell apart.
But all of these were just delays, nothing was going to see her giving up on her dream. She finally made it as Vho-Mukondeleli, the gossipmonger wife to the royal Alpheus.
The actress once had dramatic departure from the cast when she was told to cut off her hair to play the mourning wife to Vho-Alpheus when he died, and she refused. She was dismissed for refusal to comply with her contractual agreement but her essence in the weekday drama show was such that she was given her role back.
“My journey was not an easy one because I was a teacher at the time, so during the week I would be at school and on Friday afternoon I would make my way to Johannesburg for a shoot.
“We would use school holidays to catch up on scenes we were behind on. It was hectic but we managed, somehow managed.
“Word of advice to upcoming artists, just be who you are and that will get you far.
“I had a good run with the show regardless of the trials and tribulations, Muvhango became my second family, my home from home,” said an emotional Rasalanavho.
“Duma Ndlovu uplifted the Venda culture. He really put us on the map.”
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