Wing & a prayer
Songbird Lindiwe feels caged and clipped. But where there is a will, there’s a way that her voice can soar.
January has been drama month for Lindiwe (Nomvelo Makhanya), starting with the exultation of those Matric pass results, followed by the soul- crushing news mid-month that her parents could not afford the music programme that she wanted to enter, plus a rejection letter from the programme itself. Like all recent Matrics in South Africa, Lindiwe is really feeling the heat as if each failure or rejection is that make- orbreak moment. “Everyone around her has done well and she, on the other hand, has always seen herself as the disappointment. When her brother used to be around, he was a straight-A student, went on to get a scholarship and is now studying overseas. Then there’s her younger sister who is also a straight-A student…” Nomvelo sympathises. It looks like the whole world is telling Lindiwe to pack away her dreams and be practical. Too real, Scandal!, too real.
UNHAPPILY EVER AFTER
Lindiwe put on a brave face as she started work in a different academic course that promised her good career prospects and a steady future. In the face of her father Mlungisi’s (Patrick Mofokeng) pride and knowing what her parents were sacrificing financially to help her, how could she say how unhappy she was or how bored and unfulfilled? So Lindiwe has been faking enthusiasm, feeling like a woman who has lost the love of her life and had to settle for Mr Okay, Whatever. But with the dream door shut, we can expect Lindiwe to start looking for a window in February. If there is one thing that her life has prepared Lindiwe for, it’s being told no… and still doing what she wants anyway.
ANYTHING FOR LOVE
Lindiwe isn’t being a brat this time. There’s a flame in her that stubbornly flickers back to life with the slightest breath of hope and it isn’t the prospect of fame, it’s love. “Singing is what she loves. Her idols are musical legends, her goal is to get into the music industry,” says Nomvelo. “She intends to step into that picture by any means, whether it is to get a job or bump into someone who promises her dreams would come true. This a way she feels she can make her parents proud. To show them that she has the will to excel in her passion and talent,” says the actress.
BUT I WON’T DO THAT
While her stubborn determination and blind hope can be a huge benefit, Lindiwe has chosen a treacherous career path, like a Little Red Riding Hood skipping into a wolf farm in a meat dress. Too many young artists have fallen prey to exploitation – both financial and sexually – by people who are all too aware of their “I’ll do anything to make it” attitude. “Lindiwe has no worries. She just thinks everything will be smooth sailing. She’s very naïve, and impulsive with decisions that seem like they would get her exactly what she wants,” warns Nomvelo. She counsels that Lindiwe “should look out for older people asking favours of her. That’s a red flag. Lindiwe should draw the line by standing up for herself. She has the power to say no. The power of knowledge. She knows her dreams are way bigger than what people expect of her. She should not trade herself; her bargaining tool is her talent.”
THIS IS MY MOMENT
Nomvelo is thrilled by the path that her character is on despite its dangers. “It’s liberating. It’s touching. I get to connect with emotions that I thought I couldn’t reach. It’s such an amazing and freeing experience. It’s healing to say the least.” Her advice for any young performer who’s fighting to turn that impossible NO from the universe into a YES is this: “Patience and passion. These are the two things that will drive you. Trust in your timing, run your own race at your own pace and in your own lane.” As for Lindiwe, “It’s the moment she’s been waiting for and now she is about to prove everyone who has ever doubted her wrong,” says Nomvelo.