Just as most South African's were starting to welcome Celeste Ntuli in her new role as Lindiwe on the Mzansi Magic prison drama, Lockdown, comes yet another role that is a huge departure from her most popular role to date. That of Mpiyahke Zungu's oldest wife, Siphokazi, on the channel's flagship soapie, Isibaya.
Come August 31, 2018, South African audiences will be introduced to Buyi Dube in the new film ‘Looking for Love’ by Nigerian-born filmmaker Adze Ugah, which portrays some of the perils of the local dating scene for women who are almost 40.
Ntuli, will be playing the role of ‘38 and single’ Buyi Dube who has been described as "an often inappropriate workaholic who is under pressure to find love."
This film is the brainchild of director, Adze Ugah, who has worked on TV shows and films such as Mrs Right Guy, Isibaya, Society, and Gog' Helen.
Ugah says the idea for the film came to him two years ago, after a conversation he had with Celeste Ntuli about doing a movie loosely based on her life and her journey to becoming a stand-up comedian. The raw thoughts were put into an outline that went to writer Chinaka Iwunze, who turned it into a script.
"What’s unique about the film is that it’s an adult comedy, which we believe is a first for SA cinemas. It tells the story of an average South African girl who is doing her best to get by and has no choice but to use her wits to navigate the complex maze of relationships, while also figuring out a career path. Traditionally, films of this nature feature a female lead with attributes that make her extremely desirable, but our character is stripped bare of that. She could easily be someone we meet on the street,” said Ugah in a statement.
The plot
The story begins with a disastrous drunken display by Buyi at her younger sister’s wedding. In addition to that, she has her parents worried that she’s wasting her life working at meaningless jobs so they insist that she takes her head out of the clouds and focuses on finding herself a good man and settling down.
We then follow a desperate Buyi who reluctantly allows her beautiful, sexy, best friend Lindi (played by Phindile Gwala), to help find her a man from her multitudinous collection because where the hell is a heavier set, black woman going to find a man in South Africa?
"Following a series of catastrophic dates – including questionable concoctions, a quirky magician with a cat obsession, and a sex addict who can’t get enough of a big butt – Buyi quickly loses hope of finding her match. Meanwhile, Greg (Trevor Gumbi), an old schoolmate from Buyi’s past, who is in love with her, comes to town with the aim of becoming her manager and turning her into a star comedian."
In addition to Ntuli, Gumbi and Gwala who plays a serial blessee living a lavish lifestyle and thinks about men all the time, the 'Looking For Love' cast boasts veteran, multi-award-winning actress Lillian Dube in the role of Mrs. Dube (Buyi's mother).
Check out the 'Looking For Love' trailer below:
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Main image credit: Supplied