In Mzansi Wethu’s first telenovela Sibongile & The Dlaminis, 18-year-old Sibongile Mbambo finds the answer to this theme.
It premieres on Monday, July 31st at 18h30 and is about forbidden dreams, forbidden love, and what we must do when people have bad intentions toward us.
Deliwe, Sibongile’s stepmother, moves in on her father and her future. Sibongile’s dream of attending university is dashed when Deliwe marries her father and turns out to be evil.
He becomes mysteriously ill and Sbongile needs to cover his medical bills so she gives up her ambitions of studying and takes on a job as a domestic worker at the Dlamini family’s fancy pants home in Durban.
Deliwe organises the job for her and Sibongile thinks she’s doing it because she wants to help, but that’s far from the truth. Deliwe has a debt and she uses Sibongile to pay it.
Sibongile starts her new job and soon discovers that she isn’t alone when she falls in love with the Dlamini’s youngest son Kwenzo who comes with troubles of his own.
What happens next is described as a Cinderella story of forbidden love.
Duma Ndlovu’s Rhythm World Pictures is producing the series, which is based on the Zambian story Zuba and the Solalas.
Pull your chair in closer and get to know the show’s main characters with this Who’s Who based on the casting briefs:
Mawuena Geyevu
Mawuena Guveya, a Durban Gen actress, is also a cast member on Mzansi Wethu’s first telenovela Sibongile & The Dlaminis. More information about her character has not yet been revealed, but she is one of the best young actresses, with many skills and a desire to gain more experience in the acting industry.
The model and actress confirmed her role on the television series through a story posted on her Instagram account.
She posted a post on her instagram confirming the role in the TV drama.
Sibongile “Bongi” Mbambo Played by Luyanda Zwane
Vuma’s daughter and Deliwe’s stepdaughter is Sibongile. She is attracted to Kwenzo, the heir to the wealthy Dlamini family, where Sibongile works as a domestic worker.
She is a rural young woman from Ixopo in KZN who is humble, respectful, and intelligent. Her father raised her after her mother died when she was only two years old.
Her father’s earnings from his goods delivery job were sufficient for her and her father until Vuma married Deliwe, who brought two more children with her. Sibongile was abruptly introduced to a life of scarcity.
Sibongile, despite her lack of self-awareness, is so stunning that she could easily grace the cover of a beauty magazine, with a little makeover of course.
You don’t want to get on Sibongile’s bad side, as humble as she is. When pushed into a corner, she can be quite ferocious and will bite back instinctively.
Sibongile, an A-student, dreams of studying Interior Design at DUT and wants to buy her father a new van, unveil a tombstone for her mother, and get her own apartment, among other things. But fate has a different plan for her.
Kwenzokuhle “Kwenzo” Dlamini Played by Vuyo Biyela
Kwenzo is the wealthy Dlamini family’s second son. He has a younger sister, Wenzeni, and an older brother, Vusi.
He has been in a long-term relationship with Nomalanga, the daughter of a powerful politician, Sokhabase. He is, however, romantically attracted to Sibongile, a domestic worker in his home.
Despite coming from a filthy rich family, Kwenzo is unassuming in both appearance and demeanor. He does not dress ostentatiously expensively or drive a flashy sports car.
His penthouse demonstrates his taste for the finer things, but he is more obsessed with beauty and design than price.
Kwenzo is the more artistic and down-to-earth of the Dlamini brothers, and he enjoys working with his hands and interacting with the ground workers.
Kwenzo has an eye for design and creates the majority of the furniture at Sibalukhulu Design. Kwenzo, unlike his girlfriend, who is showy and obsessed with social media content, dislikes drawing attention to himself.
This can be his undoing at times, especially when dealing with his competitive brother.
Kwenzo, despite his modesty, exudes charisma without even trying. This is one of the reasons he prefers to go unnoticed.
Vumabakushoyo “Vuma” Mbambo Played by Bhekani Shabalala
Vuma is Sibongile’s doting dad and Deliwe’s husband. Although he is not the biological father of Deliwe’s two teens, he is a good father to them.
He’s a hardworking rural man, loved by the community for the services he provides, delivering groceries from town and transporting congregants to church in his beat-up old van.
He is gullible and this makes him blind to his wife’s duplicity. He has a giving spirit and sees the good in everyone, a quality that Deliwe takes advantage of
Vuma’s undying love for his daughter, Sibongile, is unmistakable. Vuma will move mountains for Sibongile, despite the fact that he is a good father to his stepchildren.
Despite his lack of academic success, Vuma values education and will go to any length to see Sibongile attend university.
Vuma is fiercely protective of those he cares about, especially Sibongile. He only ever disagrees with Deliwe when it comes to her mistreatment of Sibongile.
Deliwe Mbambo Played by Slindile Nodangala
Deliwe is Sibongile’s stepmother, and she has two teenage children from two different men. She is an old friend of Phetheni Dlamini.
Deliwe is a hustler who wants to get rich or die trying because, unlike her friend, she has yet to meet a wealthy man.
She is obsessed with money and will go to any length to obtain it. She is a gambling addict who believes that one day she will hit the big time, recoup all of her losses, and live the luxurious life she deserves.
Velephi Mbambo Played by Zamantu Khoza
Velephi is Sibongile’s troublesome stepsister and Deliwe’s daughter. She has a one-year-old son, and she is seeing two men at the same time.
She is her mother’s daughter. Calculating, manipulative and street smart. She’s a teen mom, dating an older guy who supports her and her baby financially. But there are suspicions that the baby might not even be his. She is still seeing her broke ex behind her current boyfriend’s back.
Velephi has a taste for the finer things in life and uses the money she makes at the timber factory and SASSA pay to fund her lifestyle – she sometimes loans her mother money.
Sangweni Mbambo Played by Buhle “Tsepo” Doncabe
Sangweni is a maturing adolescent who remains naive despite his understanding of rural village life dynamics. He gets along well with his stepsister Sibongile and gets along okay with Velephi.
Sibongile pines for her when he is forced to work in eThekwini and uses the opportunity to take on more domestic responsibilities, such as assisting his stepfather with the mealie delivery business.
Sangweni is unlike most young boys in that he has a strong sense of responsibility for someone his age. He enters his adolescence with ambition, being likeable, even affable.
Phetheni Dlamini Played by Ayanda Borotho
Phetheni is the wealthy Dlamini family’s matriarch. She is the mother of Kwenzo, Vusi, and Wenzeni, as well as the wife of Njengaye.
She is acquainted with one of her many domestic workers because they attended the same high school. She is Deliwe’s reluctant friend because they are linked by an old secret.
Phetheni is a devoted wife and mother who goes above and beyond in both roles. She is obsessed with keeping the family together and living up to everyone’s perception of the Dlaminis.
Njengaye Dlamini Played by Siyabonga Shibe
Njengaye is the Dlamini household and business empire’s head. He is Phetheni’s husband as well as the father of Kwenzo, Vusi, and Wenzeni. The domestic workers in his mansion prefer him to his wife because he is more approachable to them.
Njengaye is a traditional man who has successfully reconciled his beliefs with modern life. He is, however, a firm believer in traditional hierarchy and morals.
He demands respect from his wife and children as the head of the family and makes the final decisions in his household and business.
His main motivator is creating a lasting family legacy, which causes him to constantly scrutinize his sons.
Njengaye, despite being a traditionalist and serious with his wife and children, is friendly and easy-going with the domestic workers, at least after a few bottles of whiskey.
Vusumuzi “Vusi” Dlamini Played by Nduduzo Zuma
Vusi is the Dlamini family’s first child. He is married to a business-savvy and astute lady who encourages and pushes him to achieve greater heights.
Vusi is a big dreamer who wants to take over the family empire from his father and take it to new heights.
He is impatient and finds it difficult to wait his turn to take over the family business. He is competitive and regards his younger, more creatively talented brother as a rival.
Wenzeni Dlamini Played by Nombulelo Mpungose
Wenzeni is the last-born in the Dlamini family. She gets along with no-one but her negligibly small circle of school friends. She later grows close to Sibongile.
Wenzeni is a troubled teen who feels unseen by her family, especially her mother, who is more focused on the external image of the family and putting out fires between her husband and sons.
Wenzeni seeks attention in her periodic bouts of rage because she feels neglected. She is to blame for nearly all of the resignations of domestic workers at the Dlamini residence.
She was diagnosed with ADHD and has a short attention span. She quickly becomes bored and requires constant stimulation, which contributes to her desire to fire her caregivers.
Gcina Dlamini Played by Sindisiwe Zondo
Gcina is Vusi’s wife. She gets along with Phetheni and tolerates Njengaye more than her husband Vusi.
Gcina is an educated and focused woman who is so ambitious and supportive of Vusi that she encourages him to fight for his place in the Dlamini empire, even when Vusi doesn’t believe he has what it takes.
She is also strategic and calculating, at times manipulating situations to aid her grand plan. Unlike Nomalanga, Kwenzo’s girlfriend, Gcina does not come from a well off or connected family.
Sokhabase “Stanley” Dludla Played by Melusi Yeni
Stanley is an activist-turned-politician whose main goal is to ensure generational wealth for his family.
Stan, a latecomer to the world of tender-fixing, began as a socialist activist who advocated for equality for a long time, until his business crashed and left him in debt, with a teen daughter about to attend university.
A friend in politics connected him with a job that put him at the center of procurement in the Department of Public Works.
Nomalanga Dludla Played by Yolanda Myeza
Stanley Sokhabase’s daughter, Nomalanga, and they have a very close relationship because Stanley raised Nomalanga after her mother left her marital home.
She is Kwenzo’s long-term partner, and they intend to marry.
Nomalanga is living the life that many young women her age can only fantasize about. She is the only child of a prominent politician, and she has been in a long-term relationship with the heir to a timber and furniture company.
Nelisiwe Khumalo Played by Zodumo Shange
Neli is a domestic worker at the Dlamini household. She is friendly with Sibongile, and has a permanent crush on Kwenzo.
Nelisiwe knows everything about everything, especially the Dlamini family. She is inquisitive and has a runny mouth.
Nomfundo Mazibuko Played by Xoli Zondi
Nomfundo is the Dlamini household’s domestic worker leader.
She’s been at the Dlamini home for the second longest time, after Sis Mavis, played by Sbongile Mthethwa.
Nomfundo takes her job seriously and never wants to offend the Dlaminis, particularly Phetheni.
The other domestic workers know not to say anything negative about the Dlaminis in Nomfundo’s presence. She may be considered a snitch by some, but that does not stop her from doing her job.
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