It is exciting, challenging and a bit nerve-wracking portraying the role of a bisexual, according to SABC1 telenovela Uzalo actress Noxolo Mathula.
“It was challenging because that type of storyline is not easy, I had to represent that community and make it as real as possible with the help of an acting coach,” said Mathula.
In a wide-ranging interview with Sunday World this week, the 28-year-old from KwaMashu in Durban said her love for acting started at a very young age.
Mathula studied theatre at AFDA and later moved to Johannesburg to do a continuity job for a friend who was leaving the show.
“I needed a job and my friend said she wanted to train me as a director for a television show that she was working on for SABC2. After that finished, I worked with David Kau on some projects that he was doing for Mzansi Magic.”
Mathula had submitted her CV on Uzalo while she was studying at AFDA in 2014, where she wanted to be an intern.
She explained: “When I moved back home in 2018, I received a call from Uzalo telling me that they wanted to train me to become a production assistant. I honestly didn’t like the job, because I wanted to do what I love, which was acting.”
While working on Uzalo offices, her boss asked if she preferred acting than working at the office. This after she had made a few cameo appearances on the show. She picked acting and was offered an even bigger role on the telenovela.
“I love how Lily has grown because I also relate to her, any ordinary person can, because that’s how people grow in life. Lily went from being a distraction to Mxolisi, who loved money and drugs, to being someone who has made something of her life.”
In 2020 when Covid-19 hit, Mathula started a small business selling hot dogs after shooting had come to a halt.
“With acting, it’s no work, no pay. I needed to provide for my family. The mindset of behaving like a celebrity was not going to put food on the table.”
Her business, which is managed by her mother, now sells to other production houses in Durban. A container and a mobile kitchen has also been added to cope with demand.
Mathula, who is also experimenting with radio, currently works at a community radio station, Inanda FM, to gain experience behind the mic.
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