South African comedy has a new star making waves.
Nomthandazo Rubushe, who goes by Nonto R, stole the show and took home two awards at the tenth Savanna Comics’ Choice Comedy Awards that took place on Saturday, 15 April 2023 – the record for the night.
The KwaZulu-Natal (KZN)-born comedian received the Breakthrough Act of the Year Award and the Joe Mafela Award, which celebrates comedy in vernacular languages.
Hosted by award-winning comedian Loyiso Gola, the ceremony saw 10 winners take home the gongs in 11 different categories, as well as a host of celebrity appearances including Elana Afrika-Bredenkamp, Pabi Moloi, Candice Modiselle, Mbali Nkosi, Kim Jayde and more sporting the ‘Birthday Black Tie’ theme.
Having also been nominated for a third accolade in the category Best Comedy Festival or Show Award for her comedic platform the Women in Comedy Show, Nonto R’s comedic talent has been affirmed on a national stage.
She’s been a growing force in the isiZulu comedy space since 2016, walking away with the Best Indigenous Comedian title at the 2016 South African Traditional Music Awards (SATMA).
Nonto tells TRUELOVE about how she started in comedy and how it feels taking home the prestigious awards.
“I started in 2016 and it was really by chance … In December 2016, I was MCing a 21st birthday party from my church, so, I had just researched on things that relate to the youth. So, then when I was doing my delivery people were laughing, like rolling on the floor with laughter, and so that’s how I discovered that ‘oh so I can do stand-up comedy’.”
On the awards she recently picked up, Nonto R says, “I’m so honoured because I didn’t even expect to win one. I was just so grateful for the fact that I’m here. So, then I see that the first category I’m called, so I’m like ‘okay, we are done, so now we are having fun.’ And then the Joe Mafela Award yoh! Like, I am so grateful, so grateful to [Savanna] Comics’ Choice Comic Awards because when you are recognised by the public like the Breakthrough [Act] of the Year, vele what we are doing is for the public. But now … you are also getting recognised by your colleagues.”
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Nonto shares that her passion for comedy has been something she nurtured as a talent her whole life, but she tells us how it wasn’t easy finding out exactly what she wanted to do with her life.
“I studied a whole lot of things because I didn’t know where exactly I fitted. So, I studied journalism, I did youth development which, I’m still passionate about, uplifting young people … I did a whole lot of things, and I would get jobs. Maybe six months later I would quit because it’s not feeding me spiritually and I don’t feel like I’m adding value to it. And then people in the community would talk, they would ask my parents ‘Why are you letting her quit this job because it was so good, it was paying her well’, but there was just something missing inside of me, and I didn’t know where I belonged.
The winners of the Savanna Comics’ Choice Comedy Awards.
“So, the first time where I did this I was like, ‘okay, this is it!’ So it’s like now I have purpose. I can have a conversation with anyone, the president, anyone. Like, I feel like I deserve to be amongst anyone else in the world regardless of what you do and who you are, and comedy is what gave me that, because if you can make anyone laugh it means that intellectually I relate to them or anyone can relate to me intellectually and that is a powerful thing that you can get from God.
The road to excelling in comedy hadn’t always been easy for Nonto. She explains to us how in 2016 she fell pregnant and saw fewer gigs coming in. This led her to create a platform to showcase the talented comedians of KZN and the rest of the country.
“That motivated me to start a Women in Comedy [Show]. So, I started that and some of the people you saw tonight started performing in my Women in Comedy shows and now they are like here, they are everywhere, they are performing. So, my goal for females in South African comedy is just create more platforms for other upcoming [comedians] who are not known to come up.”
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Nonto hopes to use her growing platform to help inspire and uplift young women comedians in South Africa who may be unsure of where to start.
“So, I know that if I’m here, there’s more girls who are out there who haven’t even realised it yet because I realised it when I was 30. But I’ve been making people laugh for my [whole] life, but I just didn’t know that there’s a platform where I can do it professionally and make a living out of it.”
Speaking on her future goals for her platform, Nonto says, “Right now with the resources that I have I’m only doing it in Durban or KZN so my goal
Source: Snl24.com | Read More
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