Sex for rent
Zekhethelo’s mother Mapadi tries to “sell” her for a bottle of whisky and roof over their heads.
Uzalo Weekdays SABC1 (*191) 20:30
Zekhethelo’s (Nyalleng Thibedi) current living arrangements are a far cry from when she stayed in the luxurious old Xulu house with her dad Nkunzi (Masoja Msiza) in 2017. She and her drunk, dying birth mother Mapadi (Seipati Mpotoane) are now crammed together in their landlord Ntonga’s (Phikolomzi Magongoma) backyard shack. The two are living from hand to mouth, so Zekhethelo is ecstatic when she arrives home on Monday 2 April with a fist full of cash… only to find that mommy dearest has “sold” her body in exchange for the rent. “Betrayal is hurtful, even more so when it comes from someone you thought you could trust. It hurts to the core,” explains Nyalleng. “Zekhethelo has managed to put together a couple of rand, hoping that her savings added to Mapadi’s grant money will cover their rent. But she finds out that Mapadi has spent all the money that she had on a bottle of whisky. According to Mapadi, Zekhethelo should just ‘show the landlord a good time’ and their troubles will be history,” says Nyalleng. And that moment is the start of a night of terror and tragedy…
ESCAPE
Landlord Ntonga doesn’t waste time cashing in on his debt and that same night he tries to rape Zekhethelo in his car. She flees in terror, determined to leave her toxic mom. But when Mapadi doesn’t respond to her confrontation on Tuesday 3 April, Zekhethelo learns that Mapadi isn’t dead drunk for once – she’s dead- dead! “It’s like her worst fear. When Zekhethelo left KwaMashu, she had been attending classes at the UKZN medical school. She knows that Mapadi’s liver has been suffering and that her organs are close to a shutdown. She is the only family that Zekhethelo has and she has an inkling of hope that Mapadi will make it. But deep down, she knows what has happened to her mom,” says Nyalleng.
HELP ME!
Stinging with betrayal and grief on top of the trauma from her near rape, and with the landlord breathing down her neck, Zekhethelo can see only one place to turn: her former sweetheart, Mxolisi (Nay Maps Maphalala). “This is not easy for her and it makes her feel weak. She really shut everyone out in the hopes of starting afresh. One of the impacts of the issues she had with her father is that she has developed a fear of dependence, especially from a man. However, the challenge now is with her mother gone, Zekhethelo is afraid that Ntonga will return. She is fearing for her life,” explains Nyalleng. “Often these tough situations propel us to think about who really has our backs. She remembers that fateful day in KwaMashu when she was almost robbed and Mxolisi rescued her and how he genuinely loved her. She swallows her pride, and decides to turn to him for help,” adds the actress.
IT’S NOT OKAY
“I feel this is a common situation with many women,” says Nyalleng moping. “Often women get the short end of the stick and end up compromising themselves. In our province of KZN, this is a huge problem. Women spend a lot of their hard-earned money on being beautiful in hopes of attracting a man to elevate their financial or social standing in society. I was taught differently. I was raised by a single mother [she is still single to this day]. My mother and my grandmother taught my sister and I to work hard and to persevere. If your current situation is tough, you work hard and endure your circumstances until you are able to change your situation, not a man or a blesser,” she insists.