Mother superior
Clementine Mosimane is gaining fans as Mmakgosi, but she wants more than that: she wants Kgothalo’s love.
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“Every role is different even when they’re almost identical”, explains Clementine Mosimane, who can also be seen as meddling mom Gloria on Isibaya (2013- current; see more on p13). Clementine joined the Horizon Deep cast in late March this year as Mmakgosi, the estranged mother of businesswoman Kgothalo (Katlego Danke) who’s had a rough time lately – Kgothalo was shot after being in the wrong place at the wrong time on Thursday 1 March and then split from her boyfriend Rajesh (Jack Devnarain) on Wednesday 21 March. “Other than being moms, my two roles are total opposites,” laughs Clementine when we chatted to her for insight into her new motherly role.
What separates Mmakgosi from Gloria? They are chalk-and- cheese opposites. They have adult children [ Chief Duma, Muzi Mthabela for Gloria] and that is it. Gloria tries to line her pockets through her son. But Mmakgosi just wants to fix things with her daughter. So they weren’t on the best of terms when Mmakgosi arrived in The Deep? They aren’t enemies or fighting, but they definitely don’t see eye to eye. Mothers always have a “favourite” when there is more than one child. It’s not a real favourite, but maybe one child that needs more attention. Kgothalo wasn’t the favourite. [Laughs] Surely Mmakgosi will stick her nose in her daughter’s business though? Maybe just a bit. But that is what all mothers do, even if they say they don’t. They want to see their children prosper; Mmakgosi wants to see Kgothalo happy. How do you research something like a mom role? You look for things in society that your audience know and see every day. It helps them connect with characters like Mmakgosi and Gloria, who are the same but different. Do you think that your character and her daughter will rebuild their bond? I certainly hope so. Mmakgosi is being genuine about wanting to repair her mother- daughter relationship. And is there anything you’d like the writers to give Mmakgosi? Well, she is living in the Sibeko penthouse now that her daughter has been promoted within the business. The writers are still busy with Mmakgosi’s storyline, so there is a lot that can still happen…