Her name is on everyone's lips - again.
This time South Africans cannot stop gushing over her new look. But she's the same person she's always been, she says.
Actress and businesswoman Sophie Ndaba is thriving and the world has taken notice.
She's focusing on herself, being healthy, losing weight and her emotional health.
With a career that spans over three decades in the media industry, Sophie has always shared parts of her life with the public.
She always used her platform not only to entertain but to inspire and empower others and she says she will continue to do so because she understands the responsibility she has.
“You know when you’ve been ill, mentally and physically, it is a process of understanding what illness you are living with. Learning to conquer it through education is key, and because it is a process, you start maneuvering any problem that may come your way.”
Speaking to Drum, Sophie says she has entered her season of restoration, new aspirations, and new visions that are unfolding slowly, and she understands that Rome was not built in one day.
She says prayer has kept her grounded in the difficult times she had to face and her faith in understanding that when she was going through difficult times people questioned her faith, but she held on tight to it.
Read more | Sophie Ndaba on living with diabetes – 'It's not something you would wish on an enemy'
“I am taking it step by step and I am loving the process because it is on my terms. There is no pressure from anyone about anything because whatever is done, is done and the new season is non-pressured. It is all about saying there is growth, and change and we can see it, it is visible and that is important.
"What I am currently going through is not a superstar story, it is known and a norm in families. It is just that when you are known in the public eye, it becomes top conversation. But when we look around, they are going through something very similar or even worse than me. They are not Sophie, so nobody wants to talk about them.”
She says she is aware that people will talk about her, but she is at the point where she stays focused and the lesson she has learned in her journey is that when it is a no, it is a firm one, and the same applies to when something is a yes.
Sophie’s new look has garnered a lot of attention after she was laughed at years ago when people learned that she was living with diabetes.
She says that she has lost 10kg and people commended her for it, not knowing that she was suffering when she first came out about living with chronic illness.
“The new look is me. Just combing my hair and putting on makeup doesn’t mean anything. I think South Africans are gullible, suddenly those who didn’t like you, like you. Those who didn’t understand you suddenly gushed over you; it was part of the game. So, I just decided to be me, and to also show people that when you want to change as a person you will change.”
She says the day before she posted the picture that trended when she attended the Miss South Africa pageant in August, she was still the same Sophie.
Read more | Sophie Ndaba's son Lwandle puts Max Lichaba on blast in new song
“This shows me that people will take what you give them, and they will react to what you give them. As a person, if you want your brand to be a certain way, you structure it and align it because you are doing it with the vision that there are always spectators. So, I strategically posted that picture, and it worked like a charm. Because this whole thing of makeover, anybody can do it, it is a matter of deciding which look and style you want to take out there, but I was still the recovered Sophie.”
Sophie says she understands that for her to move forward and start a new season she needs to overcome everything whether it is her home, car, or business. And she says levelling up during the spring season has always been her thing.
“Somebody like me who lost most of the things I have owned, I started to think that I had lost those things, and there was nothing I could do about that. I decided to let myself focus on regaining new things which are bigger and better.
"They might take longer than the first time, but they are coming as long as my eye is still on the prize, project, and vision, so why would I not? The challenges that I went through, prayer made me strong, hope made me stronger, and my love for myself made me stronger because I began to see where I have done myself wrong and started to forgive myself, and I am going to get myself to restoration.”
