Kidnapped Phindi is “living in squalor”
Gibson’s a loose cannon while his poor victim Phindi is a sitting duck in the dingy dungeon that he’s kept her in.
Phindi Khumalo’s (Nompilo Gwala) sins have caught up with her in the new second season of Saints & Sinners (2015- current). Nompilo gives us the lowdown on her character’s ordeal after being kidnapped by her ex-lover Gibson Mosia (Tumisho Masha) just as she was getting her life together and was on the verge of finding real love with Siya (Yonda Thomas). While she had her heart set on Siya, Phindi had to ignore him after her mom Mamohato (Nthati Moshesh) basically sold her to Gibson to pay off her debts. And that brings things to a dark place for Phindi when season 2 kicks off…
What does it show, in your opinion, starting the new season with your character in
this position? It’s the physical and emotional stripping of everything she was in season 1. She’s in a vulnerable state and it shows that hitting rock bottom is the only way to start building again.
Is Phindi afraid of Gibson? It’s frightening to be kidnapped at gunpoint. Not that I’ve had any experience but I can only imagine! Gibson is drunk and looks like a hobo in an expensive suit and he’s been pushed to the very edge, so there’s no telling what he’ll do next. What about his behaviour frightens her most? The fact that he has nothing to lose after everything that’s happened leading up to this – him losing all his money and his family. So now what’s stopping him from killing her?
What Phindi conditionsis pretty is muchhe keepingliving herin squalor.in? She’s Some dirty actors all say the that time, beingno make-up…made up makesit’s more them about feel the more story in and character,not aboutbut the vanity for me. How is that different to how she lived in season 1 and how is that difference affecting her? She has no time to think about her surroundings because she’s focused on survival and getting out of there safely and back to her sister and the man she truly loves. Is she afraid for her life? What are her biggest regrets? At the end of season 1, Phindi was trying to right the wrongs of her past and stepped away from her mother. Choosing Siya over Gibson was her downfall, but I’d say that she regrets that she didn’t love Siya the way she should’ve. And maybe it’s because she didn’t know how to love him.
What does she do to ensure her survival? Gibson would never not take care of her and although she’s dirty, she’s fed and given shelter. He’s obsessed with being around her and looking after her – even though he won’t let her go! And what sort of things does she imagine while she’s in captivity? If I was ever kidnapped, escaping would be the first and only thing on my mind. Finding a hole somewhere and making a run for it. She tries but I can’t say whether or not she succeeds… What would she say to her family if she could see them again? She would sink into Siya’s arms and sob. Just to see her sister Boni (Thuso Mbedu) and her brother Ndumiso (Sdumo Mtshali) would be enough. Phindi didn’t grow up with much love around her and it would finally be an experience to feel love and know how to love.
How would you feel in her situation? I’m a calm human but I do have means, both physically and psychologically, to try get out of this type of situation. She handles it the best way she can because, in the end, it’s best to stay alive.
How long is she held captive? The entire first half of the season but who’s to say he lets her go? Maybe she doesn’t even escape… Something more sinister leads to the end of her kidnapping…