Bongi Ndaba (born 10 February 1972) is a South African producer and

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

for television, as well as an actress and playwright. From 2012 to 2014 she was the head writer and co-producer for the South African soap opera ''Generations'', having worked behind-the-scenes for the programme for eight years previously and eleven in total. As an actress, she is best known for her portrayal as Goneril in SABC1's ''

King Lear ''King Lear'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between two of his daughters. He becomes destitute and insane ...

'' mini-series (adapted as '' Izingane Zobaba''), which aired in 2008. Her most notable work as a playwright is '' Shreds and Dreams'', written in 2004, which was adapted into the mini-series of the same name. The mini-series has run from 2010 on

SABC1 SABC 1 is a South African public television network operated by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) which carries programming in English and Nguni. It was created in 1996, after the SABC restructured its television channels. SABC 1 ...

Biography

As a young woman, she successfully auditioned as an actress for The Playhouse Company in Durban, selected by theatre practitioner Themi Venturas. She went on to study performing arts professionally at the

Durban University of Technology The Durban University of Technology (DUT) is a multi-campus university situated in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was formed in 2002 following the merger of Technikon Natal and ML Sultan Technikon and it was initially known as the Durban Instit ...

and as a student, developed her interest in playwriting. After completing a second degree in Education at UKZN, Ndaba moved to

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Dem ...

because of the opportunities in television available in the city. Her writing was noticed by the Market Theatre's New Writer's Festival, and she was given the opportunity to work alongside the novelist, poet, and playwright

Zakes Mda Zakes Mda ( ), legally Zanemvula Kizito Gatyeni Mda (born 1948) is a South African novelist, poet and playwright and he is the son of politician A. P. Mda. He has won major South African and British literary awards for his novels and plays. He ...

. After partaking in a six-month selection process competing for an internship for the soap opera ''Generations,'' she, among 8 others, were hired out of a group of 230 hopefuls. She was appointed the head writer in 2012 and served in the role until her resignation in 2014. In 2016–2017 she served as a head writer of ''

Isidingo ''Isidingo'' is a South African soap opera, with dialogue mostly in English and isiXhosa. The series premiered on SABC 3 in July 1998 and was broadcast evenings on SABC 3 from Monday to Friday at 19:00. Until 2001 it was titled ''Isidingo: The ...

'', a popular South African television soap opera. One of most controversial episodes she wrote for this show was episode 29, which aired on 26 April 2017. This episode was aired just a day before 27 April, which marked 23 years of Freedom in South Africa. This episode highlighted Bongi Ndaba as being a most unapologetic, bold South African television writer. In this episode, the principal character of the show pays respect to the grave site of his father on a farm. He is then approached by two white racist men, who start calling him derogatory names. The two men bury the man alive in a shallow grave. This episode was followed by a sequence of three other episodes that were aired on 1, 2 and 3 May 2017, which were brought forward to the Broadcasting Complaints Commission of South Africa (BCCSA); they were said to be, ''inter alia'', promoting violence and promoting hate speech, thus these episodes or scenes were claimed to be in contravention of clause 4(1) and 2 of the Free-to-Air Code of Conduct for Broadcasting Service Licensees. The BCCSA's Chairperson, H.P. Viljoen that the broadcasting of these episodes did not contravene clause 4(1) or (2) or any other clause of the Code of Conduct and therefore none of the complaints were upheld. During her tenure as head writer of ''Isidingo'', the ratings of Isidingo soared as they reached an-all-time high, with 1.6 million viewers., delivering the biggest number of viewers that Isidingo had ever seen, and thus reviving a dead TV show. Sadly, when she left ''Isidingo'', the ratings of the show continued to plummet. Currently the ratings of the show are sitting to 0.95 thousand viewers. VSA https://www.tvsa.co.za/user/blogs/viewblogpost.aspx?blogpostid=49104 Top Shows on TV: February 2018. Date Access 13 March 2018.

Filmography

Awards

In 2017, Bongi Ndaba wrote a South African first WhatsApp drama series titled ''Uk'shona Kwelanga.'' It was produced by

Sanlam Sanlam is a South African financial services group headquartered in Bellville, Western Cape, South Africa. Sanlam is the largest insurance company in Africa. It is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the Namibian Stock Exchange and the ...

. Ukshona Kwelanga was a groundbreaking insurance advertising drama series, targeted at South African WhatsApp users, as the largest medium of communication. In 2017, ''Bongi Ndaba'' won a WRITING CRAFT GOLD from the Loeries for her stellar writing in "Uk'Shona Kwelanga". Loeries are the most prestigious creative industry and brand communication awards for Africa & the Middle East. In March 2018, the format of storytelling and advertising of insurance product through WhatsApp, saw Bongi Ndaba winning two awards at #Bookmarks2018 Awards for her writing in ''Uk'shona Kwelanga''. The Sanlam product ''Uk'shona Kwelanga'' won a SILVER for Integrated Mixed Media Campaign and a GOLD for Bots, Messaging & Dark Social at the #BookMarks2018 Awards.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ndaba, Bongi 21st-century South African women writers South African television producers South African actresses 1972 births Place of birth missing (living people) University of KwaZulu-Natal alumni Living people Women television producers