He's an open book, literally.
“I have removed the mask and I have had to be vulnerable.”
This is what actor Dr Jerry Mofokeng wa Makhetha says just ahead of the release of his new book, I Am A Man.
He speaks to Drum about the tough conversations he had to have with himself and his family when he was writing this memoir.
“Writing this book was not easy because I really had to dig deep and be brutally honest. There are things I did not know I felt about certain situations, which I discovered while writing this book.
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“This book was also very important to me because I share very intimate parts of my life and this goes to show that we are all human and we all go through tough situations. To have a son that is addicted to drugs for 15 years and he is a genius. It is not easy for any parent or family to deal with.
“As so-called stars people put us on pedestals and I wanted to be bare in this book, to share the wounds and the victories ,” he says.
He says he had to consult his family before mentioning them in the book.
“It was not an easy conversation to have, but they said as long I was not lying about them, then it was fine. Some of them have not read the book yet. My daughter was proofreading it and she said she thought she knew me, but reading this book made her realise that she did not know me as well as she thought,” he says.
Writing a memoir was not his original plan.
“I initially wanted to do a documentary, then I spoke to a friend of mine who asked me if I was going to tell it like it is and convinced me to write a book instead,” he says.
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“It has been four years in the making,” Jerry says.
“I was prompted by my journey of self-discovery and getting to know my true identity which gave rise to the wa Makhetha in my name which was not always there,” he says.
He wants men who read the book to really introspect.
“I would love for men to restore their manhood. We may all be males, but not all of us are men. When you look at how many people are raised by single mothers yet their fathers are alive, it's shocking. There are so many people out there with unresolved daddy issues."
The book is available for preorders and it will be launched on 21 October and will be followed by a book tour.
