EXCLUSIVE: Actress Nomzamo Mbatha Unpacks Her Character Queen Mother Nandi on ‘Shaka iLembe’

• The wait is almost over as the highly-awaited historic series Shaka iLembe's second season will premiere on Sunday, 15 June 2025
• DStv and Bomb Productions hosted an exclusive press junket where the media got to meet existing and new cast members
• Speaking exclusively with Briefly News, actress Nomzamo Mbatha opened up about her character Queen Mother Nandi on the show

Bomb Productions and Mzansi Magic are about to have many viewers on the edge of their seats as what they have for them in the upcoming second season of the multi-award-winning historic series Shaka iLembe is out of this world.

Recently, an exclusive press junket was held for the media on Tuesday, 1 April 2025, at the Bomb Production studios, where the existing and new cast members gave a sneak peek to journalists on what they should expect in the upcoming season, which will premiere on Sunday, 15 June 2025.

Read also

'BBMzansi' season 5 recorded over 250M votes, SA reacts: "This is the influence of Sweet Guluva"

During the press junket, Briefly News got the chance to exclusively chat with the internationally-acclaimed actress Nomzamo Mbatha about her role as Queen Mother Nandi on the show.

Mbatha shared with the publication how amazing and grateful she was to have been given such a powerful role of a legendary woman in South African history:

"Before even shooting this series, on my side I leaned on research and history first of all before you portray a character that is so profound like Queen Nandi. I knew I had to do a lot of research about her and kind of let her take control of me to be able to portray her on this show.

"In season 2, Nandi becomes a Queen Mother when Shaka ascends the Zulu throne, and you know I was always on set even when I am not shooting just to prepare myself. And having played this character has been an absolute honour as I have said before Queen Nandi is one of the biggest women of impact in the history of our country and I can't wait for people to watch the second season."

Read also

Drama Behind Angel Zuma’s Exit from Umkhokha: The Curse, MultiChoice Breaks Silence

Nomzamo also shared with Briefly News that Lemohang Tsipa, who plays the role of Shaka Zulu, made it easier for her to portray Queen Mother Nandi's character so perfectly as they got to connect off-screen during their rehearsals.

"Lemohang here, will tell you this, he made it so easy because with us we would be together even off set and after shooting some of our scenes. I can say that also helped me portray this character so well. Everything was just shot perfectly and everyone gave this production their best."

Shaka iLembe receives praise from Mzansi

In a previous report, Briefly News covered fan reactions to Luyanda Zwane's beauty and immaculate acting skills. The show recently ended its first season and fans were eager to see how the story will be carried out in the following season.

President Cyril Ramaphosa also praised the show's storytelling as well as the values portrayed by Shaka in the series.

Source: Briefly News