It’s now or never
Rendani pulls a runaway bride after she’s forced into an arranged marriage.
Muvhango Weekdays SABC2 (*192) 21:00
Modern women are cut from a different cloth to their predecessors. Their power to speak up and challenge traditional values can intimidate some men and Rendani (Innocentia Makapila) is definitely the scary type. She leaves the Mukwevho family speechless on Wednesday 25 October when they propose an idea for her: move to Venda and marry an upcoming chief. “She straight-up refuses! It’s a big ‘no no’ from the word go,” laughs Innocentia. But the royal Mukwevhos aren’t hearing any of it and while they understand that Rendani is young and just graduated from varsity, the family values their culture. “Rendani feels trapped! Her family isn’t going to let her get away with this – it’s a real big deal to them and for the first time, she has no say,” adds the actress.
I WON’T DO IT
In a perfect world, Rendani would put a hold on her dreams and agree to get hitched, but “she believes that this whole marriage thing isn’t right,” says Innocentia. And her uncle, who is Thathe’s Chief Azwindini (Gabriel Temudzani), seems to agree with her decision on Thursday 26 October. He waits for Rendani to calm down and talks to her about marrying someone she has never met. Azwindini, much like Rendani, doesn’t always let his culture determine his judgment but he respects her enough to let her have a voice. “She just got into the corporate world and she is loving every bit of it. It would be sad if she left that to get married to a complete stranger. It’s not going to happen,” explains Innocentia.
RUNAWAY LOVE
Dealing with a fierce contender is something that the Mukwevhos aren’t used to and they don’t know what to do with themselves when Rendani goes missing on Monday 30 October. “They think that she took off to avoid getting married but she has actually been abducted. It’s also a cultural practice where a woman is taken from her family until she agrees to get married,” explains Innocentia. But even with all the persuading that Rendani’s abductors use to convince her to agree to an arranged marriage, she still refuses and stands firm. “Not everyone believes in women speaking up for themselves. And this is going to bring unexpected hurdles in Rendani’s world that she isn’t ready for,” says Innocentia.