The Queen's Motsoaledi Setumo: I spent my childhood feeling unloved

Actress Motsoaledi Setumo has opened up about growing up with the mentality that all the odds were against her and how she eventually learnt to work with "life's lemons to make lemonade".

The actress told TshisaLIVE that although her interest in the arts started at an early age, life seemed to have a couple of detours for her and her family.

"Acting was always in me. When I was really young, my mom used to take me to auditions. But after my mom was in a car accident, there were no more auditions. That would be the first of many things that kind of messed up what God had aligned for me in the very beginning."

Motsoaledi went on to study media studies and after high school then got into radio. However, her confidence in her acting talent has been overshadowed by the lack of love she felt at home.

"Growing up I felt like I wasn't loved. I mean, my family was there and my father was very present in my life, but that void was always there. I would watch my cousins who had their family and wish I had mine. My aunt treated me well but I just wanted to be with my parents and my own family."

The actress, whose mother was left quadriplegic after a car accident in 1999, explained how she struggled to cope because no one in her family was willing to talk to her about it.

She said seeing her mother in that position, where she could do nothing but talk, hurt her greatly. 

"That was the most painful experience ever growing up. I was always with my mother and I would see my father, but I was never with them together because they divorced when I was six. So I stayed with my mother before the accident. When I was separated from her I really took a knock." 

Motsoaledi also said she went on to be a rebellious teenager. She explained that it was a coping mechanism for her because she didn't know how to talk about it.

"There came a time where I just couldn't open up about my mom being in a wheelchair. The teachers just saw the change in behaviour.  I also didn't want to be home, I couldn't handle seeing the hurt in my mother's eyes when I could see she wanted to do stuff for me but couldn't. So I ended up not wanting to be home or to see my mom. That's how I ended up as a rebel."

Motsoaledi said acting came to her rescue later in life. She said being able to express the emotions she had tried to run away from was a great help for her.

The Queen actress said she's learnt to treasure the time she spends with her mother. She added that everything worked out as it should have and seeing the pride in her mother's eyes every time she's on TV makes all the hardships she endured worth it.