With hand-made costumes intricately customised to suit each character, a cast and crew of over 8 000 people, six years in the making, the wait is almost over.
Anticipation for the premiere of Shaka Ilembe in 2023 is building.
Actress and humanitarian Nomzamo Mbatha, who is also the co-executive produce of the, series takes on the lead role of Queen Nandi, the mother of the great King Shaka.
Young actor and newcomer Ntando Zondi is set to play a young Shaka while Lemogang Tsipa plays an adult Shaka Zulu.
Thembinkosi Mthembu will play King Dingiswayo and Wiseman Mncube will take on the role of King Zwide. Set in the 1700s, Shaka Ilembe is a historical saga that captures the authenticity of Shaka Zulu’s famed reign and uncovers layers of rich Zulu heritage.
This year, at the DStv Delicious International Food stage, recently, a surprise Shaka Ilembe act was curated to commemorate Shaka Day.
The audience was transported back to the 1700s, through song and dance, into the Zulu King’s world by a star-studded lineup including MzuluPhaqa, Mduduzi Mabaso, Mnqobi Yazo, Sadaam, Mbuzeni, Sjava who highlighted the importance of “owning our African stories and using arts and culture to document the contribution of history in our lifetime and how storytelling”.
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Speaking to Drum, Multichoice Group Executive Head Nomsa Philiso, says a lot of research went into recalling the series of events to tell an authentic story.
“Before we started shooting, we had all these questions and fears of whether people like the story will or if it will be factually correct and the series of events will be right.”
She says the reason the production took time was because of consultations.
“We did not want to offend anyone or exclude anyone of importance in telling the story. We needed to make sure and be as accurate as possible, even in things like the costumes. What we then did was get ladies to handmake the beading for every costume, they are sewing, and that process took its time. In the age of GBV, the actors were not afraid to walk bare-breasted and they felt safe. It was all of that which made the production work so well together.”
Nomsa says they brought in members of the royal family, historians, and academics led by Nhlanhla Mtaka who was the advisor of King Zwelithini and and he navigated the crew and cast through the story of Shaka.
“We had academia and people who are close to the royal family and even the late King Goodwill Zwelithini gave the series a nod,” she says. Before King Goodwill Zwelithini passed, he gave the show his blessing at the Cradle of Humankind.
“Before he passed, we had taken him to the Cradle of Humankind and he gave us his blessing. He went as far as to tie a knot (ukwenza ifindo) as a symbol of his commitment. There’s a place where he made a vow and commitment to the project. So it’s always been a spiritual journey for all of us because it's bigger than all of us.”
Nomsa says they are anticipating criticism despite the amount of research that went into the project.
“We are almost willing to put our head on the block. We know we are going to get a lot of awards for Shaka Ilembe as it is told so authentically. But we are also expecting a bit of negative criticism here and there. We did not have an international consultant and we are very happy about that,” she says.
“Nobody really fully knows what happened, but they know what they were told. But we are comfortable in our story and defending it,” she adds.
