WHEN the first guitar chords of the mbaqanga ballad Wangala strummed during the opening sequence of Mzansi Magic’s telenovela turned soapie, Isibaya, South African television was transformed forever.
Five years later, the lovelorn melody, Wangala has become synonymous with one of the best television soapie to ever come out of the country. And this year, it celebrates 1000 episodes and countless moments of action, family feuds, rivalry, love, murder and magic.
Managing Director at The Bomb Shelter, Desiree Markgraaff said, when they launched Isibaya five years ago, they were "very excited about creating a show for Mzansi Magic viewers that had juicy villains, beautiful people, the rolling hills of Thukela and an inspiring hero whose enemies constantly schemed his downfall".
"In the middle of this, there were two young lovers fated to be together. We wanted to bring a world full of drama, colourful characters, vicious battles over taxi routes and tenders for new highways, and the lure of big money that can be made,” said Markgraaff.
The novel concept set against a backdrop that swings from breathtaking vistas of rolling green hills to noisy congested taxi ranks, Isibaya dared to tread where few local television shows had gone before. It’s had South Africa buzzing as it tackles subjects such as polygamy, laying bare the intricacies of the notoriously private taxi industry, addressing decades-old family feuds and confronting the taboo topic of black magic.
When the series’ loved hero Mpiyakhe was “killed” in a car crash and turned into umkhovu by his enemy, the entire country lit up social media as each episode held viewers spellbound and simultaneously chattering none stop. Isibaya had dared to address the sacred subject of black magic and the walking dead.
Central to all the turmoil was the love story of Sibusiso and Thandeka, star-crossed lovers whose epic journey of love could rival Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The young couple defied a generational family feud and the risk of being disowned just so they could fulfill their destiny – to be together as soulmates.