Actress set afloat for River stardom

Sithole believes Nyakallo gives people something to ponder regarding romantic relationships. LAYERED: HIGHLIGHTS THEMES

It’s no secret that The River, an award-winning telenovela and drama series which is in its fourth season, is a favourite in the country. It always seems to make the trending list on Twitter.

The telenovela follows the lives of the Dlaminis and the Mokoenas, two families from different backgrounds brought together and divided by the discovery of a diamond in Cullinan, a stone’s throw away from Pretoria.

Lately, the series has had its viewers glued to their screens, asking for longer episodes because of a new character Nyakallo, who highlights several themes in the series, infidelity, deceit and marriage.

Nyakallo, who was introduced to the Dlamini-Dikana family to fill in for her aunt Flora, comes across as sweet and timid, but falls in love with not only her boss but a married man.

Jessica Sithole, the actress playing Nyakallo, said these themes resonated with South Africans because the series questions the different aspects of marriage and where some women stand in their marriages.

“I’ll use marriage as an example of a theme in the drama series.

“In today’s society, not every married woman is as ‘submissive’ as one would be expected to be compared to the olden days.

“The character I play portrays her submissiveness in extreme ways because she’s after Ntate Zweli and she does this by making sure his hands are washed before eating, taking off his blazer after work and rubbing his feet,” she said.

Sithole added she liked that this theme gave people, especially couples, something to ponder regarding romantic relationships. “It’s not dictating which way is correct but it gives us clues and elements of what maybe we as women may be overlooking.

“It gives both the husband and the wife something to think about as to where they stand as a couple.” Although the 22 year old was grateful to get her big break in one of the most-watched telenovelas, her first love was the modelling industry.

“I was told about the auditions by an aspiring casting director in Bloemfontein and she encouraged me to audition because she saw potential in me.

“I auditioned alongside 50 women at the Bloemfontein

Civic Theatre where I gave it my all. I must admit though that modelling was my first love as I was focusing on it more at the time.”

Bloemfontein-born Sithole studied drama and theatre arts at the University of the Free State and was doing honours when she auditioned for The River.

“What inspired my career path was one of the huge American series I watched. I was intrigued at how the characters delivered their roles. [It] seemed like a lot of work, the science behind it and the build-up, which is what we are seeing on our screens, is something that really captured me. The curiosity of the planning is what caught my attention to end up wanting to pursue it,” said the actress.

Bringing Nyakallo to life required her to first study what the character’s name meant and learn her step by step.

“When I was given her character, I tried dissecting every letter of her name and I could say each letter represented her characteristics and that’s how I brought her to life,” she said.

Sithole said her character had many layers.

“She’s soft, but came across as deceptive; she’s respectful, but commanded attention. She was also very sleek. I understood what her name meant and the rawness and the meaning behind it. She never existed but I tried understanding what she could possibly be like,” she said.