Meshack Mavuso is a South African actor and director popularly known for his role on Yizo Yizo and is currently playing Jaxson on the new drama series Smoke & Mirrors.
He is a familiar face in the industry and has been through it all. So what drives him? Here are real-life facts about Dr Thabo from Durban Gen.
Starting off his acting career in community theater, his love for acting lands him a role on SABC1’s drama series Yizo Yizo. This sees him getting more acting gigs in soapville until things take a turn for the worst and he returns to theater. Reinventing himself, he changes his last name and returns to the small screen with a new perspective on life.
Masses still identify him as Javas, a character he plays on Yizo Yizo. He also casts in Isidingo as Vusi Moletsane before playing Chair Person on Heist.
“People still call me Javas, and for me, this is something that shows how, as actors, we have an impact on people through the characters that we play. It’s great that we are able to make a difference in other people’s lives,” he says.
“I decided to stop doing TV for a while after being on Isidingo for a very long time because I needed to go back to my first love, which is theatre. I felt I would lose my creativity,” he adds.
Despite long working hours, the actor, who has been married for almost 15 years, manages to balance family and profession. “Family is important to me, and they will always come first.” Nothing should ever take it away from you. Work is where I leave it. “When I get home, I put on my husband and father hats because I know those are the two roles I need to excel at more than the ones I play on TV,” he adds.
Because of his late grandma, the father of four is family-oriented. “My grandmother instilled in me the value of hard work.” “She went out of her way as a domestic worker to make sure we didn’t go to bed hungry,” Mavuso adds.
“There was a point where I didn’t even have a car anymore. I remember they wanted to repossess our house at some point. It was so terrible. People would come and view the house, and my daughter would say, ‘What are they doing here? Why do they want to take our home?’ I would go into the toilet and sit there and cry.”
His debt experience encourages him to be more thrifty, and he learns from his mistakes. The actor and director is worth $300,000, and his current position on Smoke & Mirrors just adds to that.
