WINNIE Ntshaba, best known for her role on Generations as Khethiwe Buthelezi, is making a comeback on our small screens. She has clinched herself a role on the educational MTV drama, Shuga: Down South and can’t contain her excitement about her role.
SHE RELATES TO HER CHARACTER
Winnie will be playing Nelisiwe, a very religious woman who is Khensani’s mother. Nelisiwe is attentive, doting, religious and oblivious to what is really going on in her daughter’s life. Winnie says she shares quite a lot in common with her character. “I relate to Nelisiwe because I am also a Christian and it’s a lifestyle. I love that she’s a family woman who prays and cooks,” she says. However, unlike her character, Winnie is not oblivious to real life issues. She says her character wants a perfect family and doesn’t want to acknowledge the challenges that come with life and that they can sometimes sway you.
SHE PRACTISES WHAT SHE PREACHES
The 41-year-old says she believes that mothers should befriend their children and teach them to be open at a tender age so that they’re not afraid to talk to them about things they’re going through when they’re teens. “Sometimes as a mother you need to bring your kids closer to you,” she says, adding that this is how she’s raising her son, Phenyo (8). She’s the first to admit that she’s not spending as much time as she would like to with her son, but she’s got a great support system.
CO-PARENTING WITH EX-HUSBAND
Asked how she manages, she says she co-parents with her ex-husband. The former Isibaya actress doesn’t downplay the role her exhusband, Thabo Modise is playing when it comes to their son. “The joy of co-parenting has been amazing. The father of my son is always available to help when I have to work,” she says. However, it was not so amazing after their divorce, which grabbed headlines. Winnie’s divorce made headlines in 2013 amid claims of abuse, but Winnie has dismissed those rumours. It is thanks to their son they have to put their differences aside. “One day I was sitting with my son at home and he asked me if his father had ever hit me. I was so numb. I immediately called Thabo and put him on speaker to hear what Phenyo was saying,” she said in an interview. After going through a two-year divorce process, she and her ex-husband decided to put their difference aside for the sake of their son.
