Meet Ayakha Ntunja, the actress who plays Amo in Youngins

Ayakha Ntunja is quickly becoming a household name in Mzansi's entertainment industry after her breakout role as Amo in the Showmax series Youngins (2024 to date). The 21-year-old fell in love with acting as a child and has never let go of her passion. She told True Love in 2024: 

I knew that expression, storytelling, was something that I definitely wanted to do for the long run.

Key takeaways

• Amo Mosweu on the Showmax hit teen drama Youngins is Ayakha Ntunja's first lead role. 
• She transitioned from the theatre to acting on screen in 2021 with a role in the Showmax film Pearls of Wisdom.
• The Gqeberha native studied at the National School of the Arts, where she won the Best Performer Full Colours Award in 2020.

Ayakha Ntunja's bio and profile summary

Ayakha Ntunja has a supportive family

The real name of the character Amo in Youngins is Ayakha Ntunja. Aya is from Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape Province, where she grew up as the middle child of three.

Her family relocated to Johannesburg when she was six. She shared in her February 2024 interview with True Love that her parents and siblings are her biggest critics, who push her to be a better actress.

I do have those moments where they're also like, 'Yoh, you could have done this better, but you are doing well.' I love that they can sit me down and just help me, but at the same time, enjoy my work.

Ntunja's passion for performing arts started in childhood

Ayakha did well academically and loved dancing when she was young. She revealed in her June 2024 SMag interview that she thought she was going to be a dancer and was ready to enrol at a dance academy.

She was also active in sports before she found her passion for storytelling. While talking to the Daily Sun in May 2025, Ntunja said she was inspired to become an actress because of the "feeling and emotion of watching characters and amazing actors and actresses."

Once I started watching movies and getting that feeling of how these stories resonate with me, I wanted to portray that for someone, even if it was one young girl who saw my story and relates to it.

Her journey to becoming an actress started in theatre when she was in grade eight, after a friend dragged her to an audition to fill a role. She told the Daily Sun in February 2024 that she instantly knew that acting was what she wanted to do and asked her father to take her to a performing arts school. She joined the National School of the Arts in 2019 and graduated in 2021.

Ayakha had a smooth transition from theatre to the screen

Ntunja had several successful years in theatre productions in Johannesburg. She won the Festival of Excellence in Dramatic Arts (FEDA) Acting Award in 2019 and the Best Performer Full Colours Award in 2020.

The talented South African actress transitioned from the stage to the screen in 2021 after landing the role of Dudu in the Showmax drama Pearls of Wisdom. She got her major acting break in 2023 when she joined the third season of MTV Shuga Down South as Thembi.

Ayakha landed her first leading role as Amo Mosweu in 2023 in the Showmax teen drama Youngins alongside Kealeboga Masango, Thabiso Ramotshela, Toka Mtabane, and Lebohang Lephatsoana. Amo is a determined girl who leaves her rural home in KwaZulu-Natal after losing her mother in a fatal domestic dispute and enrols at a Johannesburg high school.

The Gqeberha native has shared that she took the role because she could relate to Amo. As for what makes her good, the actress told the Daily Sun in April 2024:

For every role, I approach it as gently and lovingly as I can. I always remind myself that I am telling someone else's story. That requires being delicate and intuitive with each unique personality.

Ayakha Ntunja's movies and TV shows

Ayakha Ntunja is ready for the next role

21-year-old Ayakha Ntunja is getting to know how the industry works and has credited being part of the Youngins cast as a great learning experience. She told Independent Media Lifestyle in 2024: 

One of the biggest highlights of my career so far is just educating myself every day and really finding what I can do and what more I can give. 

The Youngins breakout star does not want to limit herself when it comes to her career and is always looking for the next project. She shared in her 2024 interview with True Love that she is open to working in different genres.

I never want to put myself in a box. Because one day I am feeling action vibes, another day I am feeling crazy psycho vibes, sometimes I am feeling Woman King warrior vibes, or I could feel like a Marvel superhero.

Wrapping up

Ayakha Ntunja (Amo from Youngins) is redefining what it means to be a rising star in South Africa's acting scene. Her family's support, talent, and knowing what she wanted since childhood are factors that have given her an edge to succeed in the competitive industry.

READ MORE: Who is Mosebjadi from Skeem Saam? Meet actress Zizo Sobutyu

Briefly.co.za published the biography of upcoming South African actress Zizo Sobutyu. Her role as Mosebjadi in the SABC1 edutainment series Skeem Saam is her first professional project.

Zizo was in grade 11 when she joined the cast of Skeem Saam in 2022. She started performing in theatre projects as a child and perfected her skills at the Baobab Drama Academy before joining the Dramatised Poetry Group in Brynston Parallel Medium.

Source: Briefly News