Nelisiwe Sibiya says playing a fictional sangoma has challenged her

After five years of portraying the character of Dr Mbali Mthethwa on etv's Durban Gen, Nelisiwe Sibiya is humbled by her storyline easing into ubungoma. 

Season 2 of the popular soapie reached its end on Friday with the final three months showcasing its extended version, titled Season 2B, where the contrast between traditional and western medicine takes centre stage. 

In it, Nelisiwe's character becomes a fully-fledged sangoma after previous episodes hinted at it.

The actress took to her Instagram timeline speaking about how the role was close to her heart.

“Thokoza nonke. I am so excited about this new journey and shift I took as an actress. The opportunity to portray different characters ... I won’t lie this storyline is so close to my heart and it’s been so hard! Haweh mah! Shooting these scenes were the pits! So challenging! Overwhelming and powerful. I can’t wait for you guys to see this journey I took.” she wrote.

Nelisiwe has come a long way in her career.

She's come from humble beginnings of being a store promoter to being a singer and actress.

In April 2021, Nelisiwe's first stint as an actress on Durban Gen won her the Best Actress prize at the international Zikomo Awards.

Speaking to TshisaLIVE  about her achievement at the time, Nelisiwe said as a newcomer to the acting scene she had to prove herself because of being popularly known as a singer.

“This is my first acting award and I am basically very, very new when it comes to acting.

“I won’t lie. I’ve been getting a lot of people looking down on me because of my acting. They only know me as a musician  so when I got the role on Durban Gen they were very, very shocked and didn’t think I would pull off being the lead in a new telenovela.” she said.

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