Q & A
Manaka Ranaka is the latest addition to the cast of Isidingo (SABC3, Monday to Thursday at 18.30pm). The blond, dreadlocked 20-year-old plays Nandipha, a streetwise maid for Derek Nyathi.
In the few months since arriving at Horizon Deep, she has crossed paths with the town’s crook, George Zamdela, and wreaked havoc with the Matabane family by snatching their son, Parsons.
How did you start acting?
As a kid I used to stutter. To overcome this I practised proper speech technique in front of the mirror. A few lines became a news bulletin, then a music show, then a desire to be on television.
Isidingo is your TV debut?
Yes, I signed up with my agent [and] within months I auditioned and got the part.
Would you say it is luck?
No, it’s just prayers being answered.
You are very spiritual then?
Yes, I am a Rastafarian and I communicate with Jah all the time. Hence the dreadlocks … and before you ask, I dyed them blond to celebrate leaving school.
Do you think lack of formal training will inhibit your acting?
Although I would like to acquire training at some stage, I do not think lack of it is that bad. The good thing about art is that you need talent above all else, and no one can teach you that. Besides, some of our best actors do not have formal education.
Tell us about Nandipha.
She is a 19-year-old toughie who’s been through it all. She was a prostitute in the city and has come to Horizon Deep to start a new life. Unfortunately, she has to continually resort to her old ways of stealing and lying to get by.
Any similarities between Nandipha and Manaka?
Shooting pool and, like Nandipha, I am bit temperamental. (Not to mention the understated yet potent sensuality.)
And what about the ability to wrap men around your little finger?
I never do that intentionally. But I can safely say that I have used body language to get [men] to do as I please.
Besides acting, have you any other creative pursuits?
I would like to sing. It is through singing that I express myself best
Have you ever encountered what you would consider artistic brilliance?
In [R&B group] Destiny’s Child debut album, there is a song called My Time Has Come. That does it for me.
Manaka Ranaka spoke to Thebe Mabanga