Brenda Ngxoli on being called a 'k- maid & k-b**ch'
Emmy-nominated actress Brenda Ngxoli struggled to fight back her anger and emotion as she detailed the sexual and verbal harassment she's endured in the industry over the decades.
During an interview with Anele Mdoda on Real Talk, the actress said she decided to speak out because she was tired of being scared.
Brenda said it was about time she chose herself and spoke out on behalf of other thespians who have gone through similar experiences in the industry.
"Today I'm making a decision that no matter what happens, I'm going to choose me for once, against the fear of defamation of character, I'm choosing to love me because at night sleeping alone, I have to deal with the things that happened to me."
The award-winning actress did not mince her words about the pain she felt when she was violated.
Brenda recounted how during one incident she was called derogatory names by a white actor.
"I got called k**fir maid, I got called k**fir b**ch."
However, it was not the worst violation the actress endured.
"In a space whereby I feel most at home, a space that I love with all my heart, I got fondled by a fellow actor, they (the person) rubbed on my thighs during a take. "
She added that she pushed the actor away when the person's hands reached up to her vagina.
Brenda said that during another take, the actor told her that her feet sexually aroused him and she did not how to react.
"When we were doing another take, this particular actor told me that when he looked at my feet he gets horny. And the funny thing is that I laughed. Nobody knows how to react to these things so I laughed, I giggled and I walked away."
On another occasion, The Home Affairs star's boob was grabbed by a female actress who thought it was 'okay' because she was also female.
"Secondly, I had another fellow actress grab my boob and repeatedly lament that because she is a female, it's ok according to Wikipedia. There's no Wikipedia now, there's Brenda Ngxoli with that feeling. That sensation of my boobs being grabbed."
Brenda said she did not want to mention names of the productions or the perpetrators because she was still in a legal battle over it.