Cape Town - In 2009 comedian Ndumiso Lindi quit his day job to fulfill comedy full-time and hasn’t looked back since.
With Father’s Day celebrations underway the comedian from Zwelitsha, zone 10, in the Eastern Cape talks to Move! about his relationship with his late father who passed away a year ago.
BEST FATHER IN THE WORLD
Ndumiso and his three siblings were raised in the Eastern Cape by both his parents. The comedian says his dad was a people’s person and taught them the importance of respecting others.
"My father was highly respected in our community and it was because he also respected others. He taught us to respect everyone. He used to say anyone who walks into our home should be given respect whether they were homeless or drunkards," he shares.
Ndumiso says when he becomes a father one day, he will teach them what he had learnt from his father who was a man of few words.
"My favourite story my dad used to share with me was one where he was refereeing a rugby match in the midst of Apartheid. The fans for one of the teams were not happy with his decision and as can be expected he was called vulgar names. At the end of the match a white lady approached him, to apologise for what was said to him. She then asked him where he was from and after she discovered he was from the same small town as her husband she went to fetch her husband.
"When her husband saw my father he broke down, and said that my dad’s mom, who was a domestic worker, had practically raised them. They hugged, and it was a good moment for both of them," he explains.
BOYS DON’T CRY IN JULY
In July last year when his dad passed away, who was one of the first black rugby referees in the country, he was advised by his friends not to cry and keep his head up. "I held it together but for a while but on the day of the funeral I couldn’t help it, I cried. It was emotional. In fact, I spent a lot of days following then crying. It was difficult because as a black man we are taught that men don’t cry," he says.
The passing of his father inspired his latest one man show titled Boys Don’t Cry in July. "This is about my journey, my dad’s journey. Even though it was drawn from a dark experience it is funny because it is comedy after all."
The show will run from 23 – 27 July, 2019 at Auto & General Theatre on the Square in Sandton.
