Thlupego to live again in Belinda

Fallen theatre star Thlupego Chisiza may have died last June, but he is set to live again as Belinda, a movie he wrote and directed is set to premiere on June 2 in Blantyre.

Producers of the movie, Remnant Lions Theatre, have said work on the movie, whose production started in 2022, has been finalised almost a year after Thlupego’s death.

According to a trailer of the film, the story centres on girl child empowerment. The storyline focuses on the character Kika, played by Thlupego, who is willing to sell his younger niece Belinda, a role played by Clara Kafumba, after conniving with rich shop owner, Mr Biliyati, played by Arthur Madula.

The film exposes domestic violence, never-ending family disputes and societal male dominance.

The Remnant Lions Theatre Company co-director Tiwonge Chisiza said they want to use the movie to escalate the acting legacy of the departed star.

He said they will use the platform to continue the community development initiatives which his brother was known for.

“He always had that deep desire to contribute to solutions on issues affecting our country. This film means and stands for that desire to turn around the status of our communities. We will do our best to ensure that the message in the film gets to the people in the villages.”

He said at the time of his death, Thlupego had already completed all his roles in the production so it was easy for them to finalise.

Said Tiwonge: “We had thorough preparations and discussions on what he wanted out of the project. So, it was not hard to bring out his original thoughts.”

Tiwonge said the film, among other objectives, serves to encourage people to report girl child abuse in the communities, discourage property grabbing and instil a spirit of hard work among girls rather than leaving their fate to older men.

“This movie is one of the tools that we will use to make sure that Thlupego’s name lives on. We will continue with initiatives of promoting art by staging performances in secondary schools. We plan to actively engage companies and organisations to partner us in such activities,” he said.

Members of the cast include Tiwonge Chisiza, Gloria Chimwaza, Gracious Chipeta, Joseph Ngoleka and John Suwedi.

Thlupego’s former mate at Nanzikambe Arts Nkhwachi Mhango said the film project is a befitting tribute for the fallen star. He said he believes the entire arts community will rally behind his cinematic endeavour.

“Through this effort we can celebrate his life and knowledge and the indelible mark he left in our lives. His profound passion for the cinematic arts was evident and he demonstrated exceptional talent in this field,” he said.

Thlupego is son to Du Chisiza Jnr, arguably Malawi’s theatre godfather. He died last year on June 18 at the age of 40.

Thlupego was part of the Nanzikambe Arts and he was part of the group’s productions such as Playing with Food and the adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.