In the five years since he met, married and split from one of the most famous men in South Africa, he’s had a lot going on in his life.
There have been accusations of abuse in his marriage, he’s been painted as a gold-digger and he often trends every time there’s a mention of his ex-husband on social media.
Actor Mohale Motaung has spent the last few days telling his ‘side of the story’.
Following the release of the much-anticipated “Tell all” conversation, Mohale on the Record, with journalist Aldrin Sampear on Showmax, it’s been a whirlwind of activities.
He decided to do the tell-all after hearing that his name had been mentioned a number of times on ex-husband Somizi Mhlongo’s reality show, he says.
He’s being calm and composed through this process because of how his parents raised him, he says.
“My parents are very quiet people they do not shout, I have never heard them shout. My sisters and I grew up in a household where we were taught respect, and how to deal with certain situations so I am always calm.”
He says he’s being as genuine as possible in everything he does, which is why people relate to him.
“I do not want to change who I am simply because of who I am now and how things have changed,” says Mohale.
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Mohale tells Drum that sitting down to speak about his marriage has taken a toll on him.
“It is very personal story,” he says.
“I am the sort of person who wants to deal with something and moves on as quickly as possible but if there are too many elements attached to what you are dealing with, it is hard to move on,” he tells Drum.
“I think what helped is that I went for therapy and counseling and I was able to sort of deal with a lot of things. When the interview came, I dealt with them [feelings], even though speaking about them opened closed wounds and it becomes traumatic all over again but I was able to handle it better because I had dealt with everything before going to the interview,” he says.
Why is he speaking out now?
“I think it is important for a young queer black person like me in South Africa to have people get to know me for who I am and what my truth is. It was important for me to clear up the misconception that people have about me because people always have opinions and most of their opinions come from a place of not knowing and sometimes those misconceptions could be detrimental to you because the end of the day you are human, you have a family, a brand and people that you co-exist with.”
He wanted to tell his own story his way and show people who he really is and not have them make conclusions based on what they have heard.
“I didn’t know that my name was coming up quite a lot because I didn’t watch the reality show. People started telling me what has been said and I saw newspaper articles. I saw that the misconception could be damaging to my reputation both as a person and a brand in terms of work. That is why I wanted to address all of these things that have been said,” he says.
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He says he is happy that his story was handled with respect, and now the truth is out there. Now people cannot accuse him of wanting half of his husband’s estate but half of the Wedding Special, which was stated in black and white.
He hopes he can now go back to ‘regular’ programming and focus on his work. He says next year he is going back to school to finish his marketing degree.
But for now, Mohale has a youth foundation called For the Youth and Glam Troops which helps underprivileged pupils with their matric dance. He says he is also working on his skincare range which will launch in Spring and will expand his foundation to help young people find their voice in society.
“Finding myself was important for me and I have reached and passed that stage a long time ago and I know that [with] the experience that I have, it is important for me to share it with the world because I believe in using my voice to uplift and inspire young people. I want to help people find themselves.”
He will soon be working on a campaign to feed young people who can’t afford to have breakfast in the morning before going to school. He says he is passionate about the youth because it takes a lot for young people to make it in South Africa.
“There are so many influences in our homes, social media, and community at large that it is easy for a young person to get derailed and not achieve what they wanted to achieve. I want to remind them of who they are and what they can contribute to the world for the greater good because that is where their success lies.”
