TOP actress Kudzai Carmen Musungo — popularly known as Zvaitwa in the local television drama series Muzita Rababa — said she was ecstatic after landing a gong as the Outstanding Actress at the 17th edition of the National Arts Merit Award (NAMA).
BY ANESU MUSHAWATU
She had to shrug off stiff competition from fellow contenders Gamuchirai Dube and Nothando Nobengula to scoop the award for her role as Zvaitwa in the Mirazvo Productions drama series.
“I did not expect to win this award, not that I did not deserve it, but because I had great actresses (as competitors) within the category,” she said.
“I put in hours and hours of hard work on this. I had many sleepless nights and sometimes we could shoot for up to 11 hours a day,” she said.
Musungo expressed gratitude to her fans for the support and said winning the award meant more sleepless nights as she was looking forward to new projects.
Although the NAMA awards were marred with controversy over certain nominations and wins, Musungo said it was important to respect the adjudicators’ decisions.
“We cannot all be adjudicators except for those that were chosen to be,” she said.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
The actress has had a short but rewarding career, having jumped onto opportunity in 2007 in a school project for Zimbabwe Film and Television School of Southern Africa titled Tsiva Dzemhepo where one of the producers recognised her talent and gave her a role in Shadows and subsequently, in Shanique.
She also landed a role as Nangi, the wife to a kombi conductor, and a gossiper, in the sitcom, Muchaneta.
Musungo described herself as a go-getter who shared some similarities with her alter-ego, Zvaitwa.
“Zvaitwa and Musungo are almost the same in terms of personality. They both have a strong character, but unlike Zvaitwa, I believe in myself and I listen to others,” she said.
The devoted Christian and New Life Ministries’ member said there was need for more resources to develop the local film industry.
Apart from acting, Musungo is also a writer with some of her notable works in five chapters of Muchaneta Season 3 and Muzita Rababa Season 2.
