It might look likes it’s all glitz and glamour for the cast of Gqeberha: The Empire, but for Asipezi Jita, returning to acting became her lifeline from depression.
Gqeberha-based Jita, 28, was originally from Tsolo, but relocated with her family to live at St Albans Correctional Facility — where her parents worked — in 1998, before moving to Kabega Park.
The former Alexandra Road High School deputy headgirl said she fell in love with acting at the age of seven.
Fast forward to 2022 and, after several failed auditions, she received the callback to be part of the hit series.
“Matilda is a woman from a rural village and is always in [fellow character] Anathi’s business. She is a true definition of a real friend.
“She speaks her mind. She lives in a family that does not care much, hence she cares and loves Anathi’s family.
“Life has not always been good to her, but she is always optimistic. She is loyal, has emotional intelligence, would never intentionally hurt someone and she is not envious,” Jita said.
Jita has a BA in live performance and a postgraduate BA Honours degree from Afda.
She said after studying drama in high school, being directed away from her dream to be an actress had led her down a road to depression after matric.
“I wanted to go to the University of Cape Town (UCT) and study towards performing arts, but family members said, ‘Look at your results, you should be a lawyer’.
“In 2014, I studied general BA law at UCT. In 2015 I started my BA law course. That was at the time of #feesmustfall.
“I was alone and these constant emotions about my grandmother [who had died in a fire] led me to a place of depression,” Jita said.
She said she then realised that a lawyer was not what she was destined to be.
“I had gone so far, so deep that I did not know why I was there (at university). I would go to class and have no clue what they were talking about.
“I returned to Gqeberha in 2016, where I was expected to return to complete my law degree.
“I told them [my parents] I hated law.”
She subsequently pursued her passion for the arts.
“I was willing to start from scratch and study towards being an actress.
“When I arrived at Afda I felt at home the moment I arrived. In 2021, I was asked to be the first-year learning circle co-ordinator (lecturer),” Jita said.
She said her life had definitely changed since she acquired the role in the TV series.
“It has been crazy. I was at a restaurant with a friend and someone who was passing recognised my laugh,” Jita said.
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