line on the throne as he was his father’s first son, something that was shunned by the community at the time. To make matters worse, Shaka was conceived, as Princess Nandi was supposed to go into an arranged marriage. On Wednesday morning, Style caught up with Mbatha who also happens to be wearing the hat of Executive Producer. The journey she shares has been eight years in the making. During this adventurous journey, she explains that the team had plenty of conversations, shot different scenes with costumes, and all type of screen tests, played around with hair. Eventually when they had put together the desired cast, she explains that there was a lot of intense screen test. “I remember having a conversation with Angus and telling him that listen, if I don’t get the role of Nandi, I am happy to just be Executive Producer. And he called, and I think I was in Alabama, shooting Assassin and he said that you are my Nandi. And I was like I will be your Nandi,” she says with so much zeal and passion. To get an iconic and powerful role like that of Nandi is an incredible honour for Mbatha, especially as a Zulu woman. Nandi, she says has been such an iconic figure in the Zulu culture, and how she was raised. And when she knew that this was going to happen, it was an incredible moment which came with a lot of pressure. “But also a lot of weight with it because of the history and legacy, and what she means to so many people. I am nervous and anxious about how people are going to receive this particular interpretation of who she was. But a lot of hard work went into it, and I feel like I was ready for the task,” she says excitedly. According to Mbatha, in history, Nandi was written and described as an assertive woman who spoke her mind. Nandi had this particular structure, and how she would command authority wherever she was. She is also known for her sassiness, her energy around other women and other girls.

“She was a woman who knew who she always was, and there was never a searching of self when it came to Nandi. And that was the special gift, and that’s the woman who made the king of kings. She was also a statesman way before her time,” says Mbatha. She further says that the one thing that she admires about her is that Nandi stood up against the face of injustice, and was willing to either lose her life, respect or likability. Quizzed on whether there are similarities in personality between her and Nandi, she opens up that they are both stubborn. They are both very political, and speak their words. Their words, she says often get them in trouble. “We believe that yes, the man is the head of the household, but the woman is the neck. We are both sassy,” she says. Stepping up into a big role such as this one, she says that she relied on historians and research, as well as royal advisors such as Nhlanhla Mtaka who was also the Executive Producer, Hlonipha Mokoena, the Cultural and Historical Advisor. Mokoena, she says played an integral part in making sure that voices of women are very pronounced. “She was also very much about how civilised Africa and the society was because there was a notion that civilisation came with colonialism but civilisation existed before colonialism and research has that,” says Mbatha. She further says that she had a lot of research on her hands in the eight years that they worked on the production. “I was compiling that, and living and breathing that. And obviously studying my script,” she points out, adding that she had the help of Thobani Nzuza, who was featured on iHostela. Mbatha shares that while she speaks Zulu, she is not in the same level as Nzuza, and she needed that Zulu. He was her right- hand man and they would start the day together. “The thing about Zulu is that it is such a textured language,” adding that she had to literally dig deep in order to deliver the Nandi that viewers will see on June 18th. In the eight years, she says the challenges that they faced included trying to convince people to invest in the production, and telling international funders that this production will not be in English..

Other challenges included the fact that the wardrobe was totally different, and provocative. And to convince investors to come on board was not a walk in the park. But luckily for them, they had fantastic partners in MultiChoice. Other challenges that they faced included when to shoot and availability of cast members, and finding location that were going to work. “Ten thousand people were employed, and we are talking about finding people from the outskirts of KZN to get on buses and build the magnitude of these sets and huts that were built in the 1700’ s,” says Mbatha. Above all, she says that what they wanted to achieve was to be the custodians of their stories.

Touching on the difference between the 1986 production and Shaka iLembe, she says that the difference is that their production is 100percent in iZulu, while the previous one was in English. The storyline, she says is also different as in the first one, it was based on outsiders coming into Africa whereas with their presentation it is from within.

This particular production, says Mbatha seeks to pay tribute and recognise the work and what those who came before them achieved. As the big day approaches, she says that she cannot sleep. She is trusting the process until they are on the last episode. And are taking it one day at a time. Interestingly, she shares that last year, the Zulu royal through the king visited the set, which was in connection to how the late king came and gave his blessings before the production started. “That was a beautiful full circle moment to know that the baton has been passed,” she explains. Lastly, she emphasises the need for storytellers to be able to share historical stories.

While she can only speak about herself, she says that it is a new time for her, as everybody’s dream is different. For her, she has always wanted to understand the balance of showbusiness, and the business element. “For me it is really a renaissance era, and a new chapter for me. And it is important for investors to trust that the young generation like myself can be at the forefront, and invest their money,” she concludes.