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Tawanda Marwizi Arts Correspondent
Women rights issues as well as their segregation in several communities have challenged award-winning producer William “Slimmaz” Magombedze to create a role of a man who fearlessly fights for their rights in the drama “Tunga”.

The dressing of the actors and their outlook reflects a society that has several problems that include bully society fathers, and how some people take advantage of vulnerable children in the society and sacred forests among other things. Magombedze said it took him time to come up with a script and auditions took them time as well.

“I started writing Tunga in 2015 but with the nature of the drama we took time in making auditions. We wanted the right people for the roles,” said. Tunga is the main actor in the drama and the young man shows bravery on several issues including fighting for women rights in the society.

“Tunga is a man who fight for woman’s rights in the society but in the process he faces many challenges. That is our main thrust because our main aim is to bring out such issues to the public,” he said.

“Culture needs to be preserved through these plays and several other ways and it is encouraging to see how people are responding to the drama,” he said. He said he is now considering making Tunga a series.

“The response is overwhelming and we cannot afford to end it prematurely. We are making it a series that will end probably next year,” he said. He is happy that Zimbabwe TV is playing the drama therefore exposing it to different viewership in the country.

“The drama being aired on ZTV gives us a good platform to reach out to different people in the country. I hope it will find its way to other countries that still have challenges in observing women’s rights,” he said. Other actors in the drama include Ruzvidzo, Chiedza, Chineunye and Mahwite. Magombedze has worked with different musicians on videos and has won several awards.