Siblings in Fame | Lunathi Mampofu loves having her brother Oros in the same industry
It's no secret that the entertainment industry is a cut-throat environment, but thankfully actress Lunathi Mampofu has her brother and fellow actor Oros Mampofu to look out for her, and vice versa.
Lunathi recently bagged a role on the popular Mzansi Magic telenovela The Queen as Benni. The actress told TshisaLIVE that having a sibling in the industry helped a lot, especially when it came to dealing with challenges.
"I am really grateful that I have Oros, as an artist, because I could ask questions and get clarity on how things work here. Because, no offence to anyone but I’ve always felt that this industry is very ‘false’. Like people don’t really portray who they really are.
“Oros and I sat down just after I got one of my first roles. I’m quite an introvert and I wasn’t really sure how to handle the invasion of personal space among other things and I turned to Oros. He said to me, ‘Sis the biggest thing you can do for yourself is just to be you, unapologetically.’"
After completing her studies at AFDA, Lunathi decided to further her studies in New York and while she gained a lot from her experience there, the SA industry is a different beast.
“It wasn’t easy to find my feet when I returned from New York. It’s never easy and I keep telling people that because there’s an assumption that because I studied in the States it was just easy for me. But that wasn’t the case at all.”
Lucky for the actress her brother Oros, popular for his Skeem Saam character Jama Kekana was there to be her confidant and someone who could help her navigate the SA specific industry nuances.
Lunathi said she was grateful that she had someone who understands how the industry operates from the inside.
While The Queen may be Lunathi’s biggest chance to showcase her skills here in SA, the actress has already introduced herself to Mzansi on Isikizi with a cameo role and then as Likhona on Ingozi.
To bring Benni to life, Lunathi said when she did her character research; her observations of brothers’ mannerisms also came in handy.
"I was a bit of a tomboy growing up but I also looked for Benni, I had to take from different people because she’s so layered. Like some of the things I just took from experiences with my brothers, little things like how they used to talk to girls when we were still growing up. I didn’t have to look far to learn some of Benni’s mannerisms, plus her character just reminded me of one of my friends.”