Beauty influencer makes her debut on #SABC

Beauty influencer and fashion stylist Tshiamo Modisane is making her acting debut with a groundbreaking non-binary character that will highlight LGBTQI+ representation on mainstream television.

Modisane has been cast in new SABC1 TV series African Dreams, portraying non-binary character Thabang Sithole.
She is content producer for the latest and final season of celebrity gossip show Real Goboza.

"I'm very excited, mostly because I've always seen myself behind the scene. Even though I've done a few acting cameos, having an actual character that appears in 13 episodes of the show is amazing. I believe that my character plays a very pivotal part on the show," Modisane says.

"I connected so much with the character that I had my boobs flattened. I tried to be as flat-chested as possible to pull off a convincing act."

Being in her 30s, Modisane had to research slang words used by Gen Z to match the character. Social media platform Twitter helped a lot with that.

"However, the thing I found easy to execute was bringing truth to my character's ambition seeing that I also implemented that in my career," Modisane says.

Modisane, who identifies as genderqueer, hopes that SA children, especially those in the LGBTQI+ community, will see themselves reflected in the character.

Njeza and Nosipho's toxic relationship on #Uzalo explained. #SouthAfricaBlog

Nosipho (Nompilo Maphumulo) finds herself in a position she never dreamt she'd be in: she's a battered woman and scared for her life. What started out as a few shoves at the end of September escalates into full-on abuse by the man she deeply loves Njeza (Nkanyiso Makhanya).

"The abuse goes from just threats to him choking her, kicking and slapping her until she has bruises on her face," reveals Nompilo. "Nosipho is in too deep and crazy in love with her man and she wants to cover up for him.

She doesn't want anybody to know what's happening between them. He's buying her make up to hide the bruises and she sees this as a gesture of love." 

But that changes when Njeza beats Nosipho to the point where she decides that she needs to buy a gun to protect herself from him…

SCARED & ALONE

Nosipho is growing increasingly worried that the next time Njeza hits her, she may die. "So the gun is there to shoot him and put a stop to the abuse," says Nompilo. "She doesn't want to go to the police, and she has no one that she can talk to about her problems." 

But before she can use it, Njeza – who was released from prison a year ago after serving time for killing his dad after the man had beaten Njeza's mom to death – begs her for forgiveness. He explains his family history in an effort to try make her understand his actions. 

"Njeza saw how his father dealt with his mother when she disrespected him. He beat her up to make her toe the line," explains Nkanyiso. So Njeza does the same to Nosipho…

Njeza feels that Nosipho deserves it, he thinks that disrespects him in public and in front of his family. "That makes him feel less of a man outside of their relationship," adds Nkanyiso.

Njeza begs Nosipho for forgiveness – again. "He really loves Nosipho, that's why he keeps going back to apologise to her, because he doesn't want to lose her. Njeza sees that he has a problem, but he doesn't know how to deal with it. He never got counselling for the trauma that he experienced with his father, so he never got a chance to deal with it," explains Nkanyiso.

'Skinfluencer' comfortable in her own skin! #GirlTalkZA

Mpoomy Ledwaba is breaking all stereotypes imposed on women by living loudly in her imperfections.

The 26-year-old, married to Brenden Praise from Idols SA, has embarked on a skin journey as one of Nivea's Skinfluencers. The group will learn, teach and engage women on skincare. 

Although she s now embracing 'that every part of herself, Ledwaba admits it has not always been the case.

"I was not always comfortable in my own skin. Fully loving and embracing my skin was and still is a journey that I'm vulnerable and comfortable with. I am comfortable with not always feeling great," Ledwaba says.

The mother of two experienced skin breakouts post-pregnancy. "My skin was a mess, I had to be intentional with the food I was eating, drinking lots of water, incorporating a routine and treatments," she says. 

"It's been important to recognise that as my hormones change so do my skin's needs. Taking care of my skin is something I've fallen in love with. Nothing beats being able to enjoy a make-up free day with a smile."

For Ledwaba, "beauty is freedom", meaning that one has to be free with their "unique beauty, in all shapes, sizes, textures and colours".

"I do believe beauty is skin deep. We could play around and say not really, but how you view yourself from the inside is what matters most. All other voices don't matter if you don't see or feel it."

She says the most important thing she aims to do is limit her stress levels and drink more water.

Nandi Dlepu gives women the thumbs up!

Anchored on a narrative that seeks to inspire creative women entrepreneurs and freelancers, co-founder of Bloom, strategist and curator Nandi Dlepu believes driving the right types of conversations to help women find growth in their business is key to elevating their chances in the creative space.

"Founding Bloom came from a personal need. About five years ago I was looking to leave advertising and I wanted to start my own business. I was looking for a platform that will kind of inspire and empower me on my journey. Although I found amazing female-led platforms, what was continuously missing, according to me, was that they focus on traditional careers quite often.

"The need for funding for a creative business is different compared to a traditional business. And, that's actually how Bloom started," Dlepu said.

"It was like, I'm looking for this 'thing'. I can't find it! Then I thought: 'I'm going to host a get together where women are going to talk about their journey, where we'd have some creative entrepreneurs come and talk about their journey'.

"I then urged people to sign up and we were over capacity I noticed that that need was mirrored by other women who were looking for the same kind of assistance for their business in the creative space."

Creating experiences to inspire creative females through conversations of "diversity of thought" and "women in leadership in the creative industry" was the order of the recent Women in Bloom event.

Celebrities rev up SUV challenge

The annual SUV Challenge is coming to KwaZulu-Natal this month.

Launched in 2018, the annual event has taken place in the Eastern Cape over the past few years.

The Challenge is a fusion of adventure with social responsibility, as it aims to promote road safety, travel and tourism, social cohesion and development in a fun way.

The KZN SUV Challenge tour will unfold over six days from October 18 to 23. The tour starts in Jozini where a road safety activation will be undertaken along the Jozini Interchange, aimed at encouraging behavioural change among motorists and road users at large.

"Since inception three years ago, the SUV Challenge has become a dominant feature in the calendars of adventure enthusiasts. What sets us apart is our ethos of responsible, impactful fun, said Siyavuya Mbete of Deep Sky Blue, founders of the SUV Challenge.

In line with its theme of impactful fun, the tour will entail a range of community outreach activations, including a major vaccination drive to encourage the public to get their Covid-19 vaccine, as well as address the issue of gender-based violence.

"Our line-up of community outreaches includes road safety awareness campaigns, sponsorship and motivational talks at rural schools, social cohesion activities, and a clean-up campaign," added Mbete.

Heritage sites to be visited along the tour route include the King Cetshwayo Capture Site, Isandlwana Battlefield, Kwakhangelamankengane Royal Palace, Nelson Mandela Capture Site and Isithumba Adventure Park.