- Ayakha Ntunja's first lead role in Youngins comes after excelling at the National School of the Arts.
- The 20-year-old enjoyed performing since childhood and has her family’s full support in her acting journey.
- She hopes to take on more roles that push her out of her comfort zone.
One can already tell from the demure, determined and complex nature of Youngins’ main character Amo Mosweu that her portrayer is destined for greatness.
Ayakha Ntunja takes on the lead role in the Tshedza Pictures-produced series and breathes life into the sweet and strong-minded Amo from rural KwaZulu-Natal who is introduced in Youngins as the new girl in school.
Ayakha’s breakthrough first came with the role of Thembi in the third season of MTV Shuga Down South in 2023.
Her move from her hometown of Gqeberha to Johannesburg with her family at six years old saw her explore all of her passions that led her to the big stage, from sports to dancing and poetry.
At just 20 years old and already engrossed with back-to-back filming schedules, Ayakha shares with TRUELOVE where her love for acting began.
“My family likes to say I definitely was the mover and shaker. Any sport, you name it, I tried it. Anything, I did it because I had always wanted to keep myself busy. But I will never forget the day where I was driving to an audition in Grade 8 when I was 13 years old and I had to recite a scene on the spot and I was like, ‘What am I doing?’ But ever since that day, I found such a beautiful love for the arts, especially acting.
“I’ve always done dance before and that is a form of expression, that is a form of art and when I got into acting, it just brought out more in me and I knew that expression, storytelling, was something that I definitely wanted to do for the long run and when I made the decision in Grade 10 to move to NSA (National School of the Arts), I think that was when my mind fully shifted into investing my time and space and environment and really seeing where this can take me.”
By the time Ayakha matriculated from NSA in 2021, she had bagged herself a Festival of Excellence in Dramatic Arts (FEDA) acting award, achieved full colours and directed for FEDA, showcasing her leadership skills.
Seamlessly transitioning from stage to screen, Ayakha featured in films such as Pearls of Wisdom, Ubizo Lakhe, NTASH and Ke Bona Spoko.
With Youngins as her first lead role and portraying the real world of teenagers in Mzansi – sneaking out, high-school crushes, exploring intimacy, the works – Ayakha reveals her family’s reaction to the show.
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“My family, yes, has watched Youngins and they are all falling in love with my character. Obviously, Amo goes through so many trials and tribulations and with her ups and downs, they keep questioning. They’re like, ‘What are you going to do this week? What are you going to choose from? Do you like both of these guys? What’s happening?’ and they ask me such random questions on it. But they are in full support of it, especially my sister, my brother,” she explains.
“They’ve gravitated towards my character beautifully and they are my biggest critics as well. Definitely family is people that need to push you and always want more from you and the best from you so I do have those moments where they’re also like, ‘Yoh, you could’ve done this better but you’re doing well’, so I love that they can sit me down and just help me but at the same time enjoy my work.”
Ayakha shows that a supportive family, talent and hard work will get one far in life, not to mention being recognised by some of the country's most prominent production houses and streaming platforms.
“Thank you so much to Showmax and Tshedza for giving me such an amazing opportunity and everyone who was part of the decision making because I know it goes through a lot of people to pick someone to lead a show.
“And I believe that a show is made up of so many people, so many characters, so many different storylines and I never look at the number on the call sheet because I don’t think that changes my work ethic, it doesn't change my position but it just shows that you’re a part of the people that are going to bring the story alive and I’ve just had an amazing opportunity come to me and I’m so grateful for it.”
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Not one to limit herself when it comes to any upcoming acting roles she’d love to take on, Ayakha hopes her future in entertainment will have her out of her comfort zone.
“I have so many roles and I never want to put myself in a box. Because one day I’m feeling action vibes, one day I’m feeling crazy psycho vibes, one day I’m feeling Woman King warrior vibes, one day I’m feeling like I could be a Marvel superhero. So, I feel like as they come, they just become my dream more and more. And I believe they’re never out of reach if you work hard enough and keep pushing, work on your talent and keep working on your skills.”
But when the young rising star isn’t in front of the camera, she spends her downtime exploring adventurous activities like fishing, swimming and watching art come to life in the cinema or in theatres.
Explaining why she feels it’s important for her to explore more passions, Ayakha says, “I always try and find activities that can just always ground me, keep me down at earth but at the same time just keep me excited. As much as we get tired sometimes and the days are long, I always that as a performer, an actor, singer, anyone in the industry, always keep treating yourself. Have those days where you just switch off social media, switch off everything that’s going around you and just feel.”
