Anele Matoti and Unathi Guma played husband and wife on Gqeberha: The Empire. Photo from Facebook
THE cast of Gqeberha: The Empire is grateful to Mzansi.
On Friday, 10 January, they bid goodbye to the small screens as the final episode airs and they thanked Mzansi for making the show possible.
The Mzansi Magic Xhosa telenovela was canned and the actors spoke to Daily Sun about being part of the show and saying goodbye to Mzansi.
The show premiered on 16 January 2023 starring Mbulelo Grootboom, Zikhona Sodlaka, Zandile Msutwana, Phila Madlingozi and actors such as Bongile Mantsai, Rorisang Mohapi and Zinzi Nsele joined along the way.
Anele Matoti, who played casanova Msimelelo, said he loved his character even though it angered viewers.
“I would better call it relation, I think that there is a lot of realism and truth in the character that was Msimelelo, hence the frustration that you may call anger. I think the fact that the character was made to be a touch bigger than the reality is what had viewers frustrated.
“For me, Msimelelo became a part of me, I had to own all the mistakes he made that were mostly driven by his insatiable serial appetite. I do not have an appetite quite like Msimelelo, but I had to believe that I was him. Finding his roots which are Gqeberha, is something that I will always be grateful to have succeeded in doing. I also appreciated his genuine remorse and of course, his childlike inability to stay out of trouble,” he said.
He thanked the production company, channel and fans for the support.
“Tshedza and Mzansi Magic, with the government of the province, have achieved a first, this will never be taken away from them, what an honour to have been part of the historic 520 episodes of Gqeberha: The Empire.
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“To my fellow colleagues, a simple and emphatic thank you to everyone. A community was created, I welcomed the love and the criticism. I left everything there on the screen and I did it for the viewers, for my family, for my colleagues and lastly for myself. Long may the industry grow in my home province,” he said.
Unathi Guma, who played Funeka, said being part of the show was a huge highlight for her.
“Being part of the show meant a lot. It’s the very first telenovela shot in the Eastern Cape. The reason I even agreed to play was because I knew it was history in the making. It may not be something big now. But in the coming years, kids will understand you don’t need to go to other places to pursue things, you can grow here. It opened a lot of doors for people not just in Gqeberha, but the whole of Eastern Cape.
“It has been a journey, it’s been amazing. I had never worked with people of that calibre. I enjoyed working with the cast was amazing. It was like they knew we would love working with each other. I’m proud of the work that we did. I’m thankful to the fans. This is just the beginning, there’s more coming,” she said.
Oros Mampofu, who played Ntando, joined the show in season 2 and said he felt right at home.
“Gqeberha as a region, it was a pleasure. I had never worked out of Jozi for this long. It reminded me of the love I had always had for the coast. To my colleagues, thank you. Each and everyone, from the guy who used to drive me from home to set, the people who were rigging up and down, the cast, crew, the cleaners, people who just smiled when you arrived at work. Those were the things that kept us going. Thank you very much.
“To the supporters, I know it wasn’t easy taking on a character from someone. The kindness I experienced, the warmth and the uncomfortable moments. I’m really grateful for every message of kindness. Thanks to all the people who supported us, I assure you, we’ll be back in the Eastern Cape. The region needs to be represented on a global stage,” he said.
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