Raphael Griffiths on being the cheeky little bro
Zithulele is the “bad apple” of his tough-love dad Zimele’s eye.
Imbewu Weekdays e.tv (*194) 21:30
By now, viewers have figured out that big brothers mean big drama in the Bhengu family. While oil magnate Zimele (Mpumelelo Bhulose) beams with pride at his 27-year-old older son Nganono Bhengu Jr (Xolani Mfeka) for following in his business footsteps, he takes a dim view of the cheeky jokes and mischief that he is getting from Nganono’s 22-yearold little brother Zithulele (Raphael Griffiths). But there’s more to Zithulele than meets the eye…
FAMILY TIES
“Zithu is not the black sheep of the family that people think he is,” insists Raphael. “He is, in fact, similar to his dad. He is fighting preconceptions and tradition. He’s the third child, the second son. His brother wants to be part of the family business – good for him. That isn’t for Zithulele.” Looking at their dad’s relationship with his own big brother Phakade (Sandile Dlamini), neither of the younger generation is that impressed. “Their relationship is fake. Even Zithu’s brother sees it – he says to him that ‘I want us to have a proper bond, not like Dad and Uncle Phakade.’ Zithu’s only problem is with his dad. His mom, gran and sister have shielded him from his dad’s anger. They constantly fight because Zithu wants to be his own man. Maybe that’s the problem: they are cut from the same stubborn cloth.”
TWO FINGERS TO TRADITION
Raphael can easily relate to Zithulele’s strong ties to the women in his family. “I’m close to the women in my life just like my character,” he says. That might be part of why Zithulele is so keen to buck tradition. “He hates cultural ‘guidelines’ that try to control. We’re living in a different time where yes, you should acknowledge traditions to a degree and your customs rather than disrespect them, but we’re in a different time. I was surprised when we went down to KZN for filming that there were so many young men who couldn’t speak isiZulu in a traditionally Zulu region, let alone knew about