EXCLUSIVE TRIBUTE | 'Odwa didn't have to die this way' -Andrea Dondolo

Just hours before Andrea Dondolo is to read Odwa Shweni's eulogy on behalf of his wife at the memorial service on Wednesday, she struggled to hold back her sobs as she spoke about the sudden death of the actor who was her childhood friend.

Odwa died while on set of a movie called Outside while rehearsing a fight scene at a dangerous location. Andrea explained that she and Odwa had grown up together and fondly called each other 'king/queen cousin'.

"Oh he was my king cousin, that’s what we called each other. We grew up together back in Eastern Cape, went to the same church and we always knew we were the same kind of rebel," she said before taking a deep breath.

"I know that as artists, we give our all. We do all we can and the least that could be done is to protect us. He didn't have to die this way. It could have been avoided," she said.

Andrea remembered his lively spirit and how the two of them considered themselves rebels for growing dreadlocks despite disapproval from their church.

She said Odwa was so excited about the role, adding that he had many projects in the pipeline and that acting was just one of the talents he had. 

"When he got the part he approached me with it, I still have our chats. He was like, "Please, you have to help me with this because I've been told about things like method acting and I'm not that kind of actor. But they saying I align with the vision they have for the character."

The actress said the manner in which he died was a result of inhumane carelessness from the producers and filmmakers. She said they didn't realise what they would be robbing the people in his life of by endangering his life.

"These people forget that we, actors, are important to other people. We are human beings and Odwa was a father, a husband, a brother and a lot of things.

"But Odwa was more; he meant more to us, his family his wife and his children. He grew up being very close to his mom so he had a motherly nature about him. His daughter came home and the first thing she said was, 'I can't wait for daddy to do my hair.'  I was shattered."

Andrea said as an actress, she knew that speaking up about safety issues on set automatically compromised you.

She said most actors operated on the basis of trust and that often producers took advantage.

"When you get onto a set and you speak up about such issues (safety), you are automatically labelled a diva. We've been programmed to hand over all we are as artists. In theatre, we are often told, the only time you don't show up is when you are dead. That's how devoted we are."

The actress and activist said at the moment she just wanted to help his family wherever she could and therefore was letting the activist in her take a back seat. However, Andrea said she planned on ensuring that Odwa's death was not in vain.

"Odwa has always been wise beyond his time. His death will not be in vain. There have been a lot of near death experiences and since he died actors are speaking about it seriously for the first time.

"His death will not be in vain. This will not be one of those things were we get hyped up because Odwa's name is in the headlines. Compliance and safety in this industry need to be addressed. If he's a martyr for us then we need to make sure these conversations never die."

The news the death of Odwa Shwezi, a 39-year-old actor‚ from Centurion, Gauteng‚ who fell from a cliff at the Sterkspruit Waterfall near Monks Cowl in the southern Drakensberg left the industry shook last week.

It was revealed that he was rehearsing a fight on a movie set in the Drakensberg plunged to his death when he fell 40m into a river and was washed over a waterfall on Thursday.