NEW E! HOST…
IT’S BEEN three months since Katleho Sinivasan was crowned E! Host Africa winner, but he has already interviewed celebrities, hosted a red carpet and calls Zuri Hall a friend.
He recently returned to South Africa after a stint in Los Angeles that saw him working with E! hosts and interviewing Pretty Little Liars star Sasha Pieterse.
“All I wanted to do was just stay in Los Angeles, it is such an amazing city. I did not know that going to LA to the E! studios and interacting with the other hosts and even interviewing someone was included in the prize package. It was a complete surprise for me, a surprise I absolutely loved,” he said.
“The last three months have definitely been a beautiful rollercoaster. I actually did not realise how big winning the E! Host Africa competition was until I got to Los Angeles. I think being surrounded by other E! Hosts, being in studio with them and interacting with them made the moment real.”
Sinivasan was in LA to shoot a one-off special episode of him joining E!, titled E! Host South Africa: Destination Hollywood. The hosts in the US are celebrities in their own right, including Jason Kennedy, Catt Sadler and Zuri Hall, who also introduced him to one of her favourite local hangouts where the two talked frankly about their individual journeys in the entertainment industry.
“The hosts in America are all celebrities in their own right so I was always trying to keep my cool. On the outside I looked relaxed, but on the inside I was screaming, it was so exciting. I did not want to seem like a groupie. Instead I kept watching their every move and drawing inspiration from them,” Sinivasan said.
Although he had a presenting gig in the past and has also featured in local sitcom My Perfect Family and drama series Mutual Friend, he said nothing could have prepared him for a sit-down interview with Pieterse.
“I was taken aback by how humble and sweet she was, I honestly could not believe it, she was not even close to being a diva or difficult. She was incredible and I enjoyed chatting to her. She really has a great aura about her and I think, for my first time, I did really great.”
On the differences between celebrity life in the US and South Africa, he said that in the US it’s all about the craft.
“I think that one of the major differences is that in South Africa we are focused on being a celebrity and not what we are famous for – our craft. Whereas in the States, I noticed from the people I interacted with and met, being a celebrity is secondary to their craft, which is amazing,” he said.
Sinivasan will also be hosting his second red carpet at the SA Music Awards alongside Bonang Matheba. “I was very nervous while hosting the Saftas red carpet. That experience showed me that I need to have my own style of presenting and I think that going forward, people will see my growth. I mean I have come back as a different presenter after my time in LA,” he said.
He added that hosting a red carpet takes weeks of preparation. “For me the preparation begins weeks in advance, not the night before. “I want to be comfortable when I am interviewing people, I want to have all the facts and I want to have a conversation,” he said.
Catch the E! Host South Africa: Destination Hollywood premiere on Sunday at 8.55pm, on E! Entertainment Television, DStv Channel 124.
The hosts in America are all celebrities in their own right. I was always trying to keep my cool. On the outside I looked relaxed, but on the inside I was screaming, it was so exciting. I did not want to seem like a groupie. Instead I kept watching their every move and drawing inspiration from them