‘The River’ creator Phathu Makwarela on Patrick Shai’s impact on the industry
THE past two years have been marked by death, of both ordinary people and celebrities. And it appears that the cloud of darkness has not yet passed. In the space of a month we have lost Betty White, Sidney Poitier, André Leon Talley, Bob Saget and now one of South Africa’s finest thespians, Patrick Shai.
Shai, a legend who has trod the boards on the best stages and was directed by some of the finest, passed last week due to suicide.
A gifted actor, his loss has been felt by many and rocked many of his colleagues who have poured out their hearts and openly shared how the industry has been impacted by his passing.
Shai had a storied career and starred in some of the most iconic shows on stage and television, and featured in both local and foreign films.
One of his final roles was as Phasha on 1Magic’s The River. It was a role specifically created for him by the creators, Phathutshedzo Makwarela and Gwydion Beynon.
Below, Makwarela shares just how much of an impact Shai had on the industry, how his passing has affected the industry and on the special reason they cast him as the unscrupulous Pasha.
Can you quantify – for lack of a better term – just how much of
a loss Patrick Shai’s passing is to the industry?
I’m a product of black South African television stories. Ntate Patrick has always been the pinnacle of excellence, a guiding light of what acting can be and what acting should be.
To imagine our industry without him is unfathomable. He defined close to three decades of television dominance with his many and various roles, and I’ll miss that – the industry will miss that.
What was it about Patrick Shai that gave him that edge as an actor?
He had a gift, a gift to be able to transport viewers to another world as those who have watched him on stage, TV and film will attest.
He had a worldly range as an actor – that is what made him compelling to watch.
I know it’s very rare for South Africans to acknowledge that our own actors are just as good as global Hollywood actors – but there was magic in Ntate Patrick’s acting that rivalled many of the blockbuster stars of Hollywood.
Watching him perform was a work of wonder.
Why was it important to get on him
The River?
This is a tricky question, so I will answer it without giving the loyal viewers of The River a spoiler.
Mohumi (Seputla Sebogodi) has been the biggest character driver of the series this season and as we moved towards the climax of the season, we were pushing Seputla to the highest performance as an actor and we thought what is better than bringing in another actor of his calibre – and we decided to go with Ntate Patrick Shai as a way of paying homage to the SABC TV dramas that came before and really inspired me.
Those old enough will know that Ntate Patrick was the original lead in Bophelo Ke Semphekgo – however his role was recast and the actor who was hired to play his character was Seputla.
It felt like a swan song of some sort towards the climax of the season, and little did we know that this would be Ntate Patrick’s TV last role – a true swan song.
Tshedza Pictures has made a concerted effort to cast some of SA’S legendary actors in your productions. Why is this important?
I was raised by TV, television was escapism for me and for years as a youngster I have held so many legends in high regard.
Now that one is an executive producer at Tshedza Pictures, we feel that it is our duty to venerate and give flowers to those legendary actors who inspired us to be who we are today.
What one must realise is that our industry wasn’t the easiest in the 80’s and 90’s, so many veterans
passed away with a feeling of displeasure and disillusionment about their careers and the struggles that they have had to endure to be entertainers.
As they face their golden years, it’s up to us as young creatives to wipe away their tears of strife, and validate
them – to tell them that all their sacrifices mattered. That we are who we are because of them.
Any words of comfort to his fans?
His work will live on and it’s through the beauty of his work that we must remember and celebrate him.