Lusanda Mbane opens up about the ultimatum that led her to acting

It took an ultimatum from an old boss for Scandal! actress Lusanda Mbane to choose acting over her corporate gig, and it has been the most rewarding decision she's ever taken. 

The actress told TshisaLIVE that she did "acting on the side" due to the fear of the unknown that comes with acting for a living.

However an ultimatum from her boss to choose between her big salary as a marketing manager or her acting pushed her towards what she believes she was always meant to do.

"I was balancing quite well until I got a call to come do season two of SABC sitcom Abo Mzala and my boss said no. I was asked, 'must we now tell your team that they are working with a celeb that needs time off to go act?' But I was no, I want to act.

"The thing is the higher you move up in the corporate space the more comfortable you get. There you know your place, it has its own challenges but you are settled and you know where your money is coming from. I was fearful of how life would be when I have to ask questions like, 'where will my income come from this month?'".

It took Lusanda a week to make her final decision and by the time she did, she had missed the Abo Mzala opportunity but she wasn't going to turn back.

Lusanda believes she would have never left her job if she was not at a crossroad. She said she appreciated the push it gave her because it was as if the universe was waiting for her to fully choose acting.

The minute she asked her agent to find more stable roles as opposed to the cameo roles she did before she was "unemployed," more doors opened.

"It has been worth it and given the chance I would do it the same way over and over. It has been worth it, not only because it fulfills me but the way I arrived to it. I'm glad I started in corporate, now I have more to offer. I know a lot about things other than acting and that helps."

The actress now plays Boniswa on Scandal! and is loving every minute of it.