Zimpapers Logo

Some of the guests that graced the awards ceremony

Tafadzwa Zimoyo and Monica Cheru-Mpambawashe
Glitz and glamour, were conspicuous by their absence at the just held Nama Awards 2014. If a style police force existed in this country, the organisers and most of their guests including some awards recipients would have been arrested on that night. Shoddy and inappropriate dressing, zero décor as well as long and boring speeches certainly killed the night.
What an awful spectacle to stream live for all of Africa to laugh at!

First of all the organisers chose their event to fall in the same general period as world A-ceremonies such as Bafta, Golden Globe and the Grammys’ thus setting themselves up for comparison with the best of the best.

And then they do not even make an effort to prove that they have a rudimentary understanding of how a gala night should be run!
As self-appointed analysts, we are left wondering if the organisers are merely ignorant or just suffering from a surfeit of complacency.

We presume that because Nama literally has no competition they feel that they can get away with getting the awards done with anyhow, so long as they are out of the way for another year.

But being an event of a national magnitude with the potential of even attracting the interest of international and regional celebrities, foreign art organisations, promoters and fellow national arts bodies worldwide, the event is expected to live up to high standards that should leave others green with envy whenever they hear that Zimbabwe is hosting this mammoth showcase.

Organisers of the event, the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe, deserve all the kudos for ensuring that the Namas go on without fail each and every passing year.

They deserve all the applause for recognising and rewarding artistes for their contributions and efforts in as far as the Zimbabwean arts industry is concerned.

After all, the arts in Zimbabwe make up an exemplary part of the cultural, tourism, social, economic and traditional heritage of Zimbabwe, hence the move to make it a must to honour artistes yearly becomes imperative, paramount and key to the contribution of the country’s development process.

But NACZ must realise that if a job is worth doing, then it is worth doing well.
“What have they been planning since last year?

“The problem is that if we comment much about them or give them the glitz and glamour tip, chances that you will get nominated or invited in the coming years are slim. After all, we all want that award because that is the only one well recognised in Zimbabwe” said a local prominent musician who asked not to be identified. Instead of learning from experience, it seems organisers are stuck in a rut whereby the same drab performance has become the standard for all Nama episodes.

“For the past 13 years the organisers don’t want to learn, in fact taking a leaf from neighbouring countries. Why not move with trends. Looking at the recent awards ceremony held in Bulawayo, one would think it was like a speech and prize giving ceremony at a high school,” protested one Tendai Mtawara on Facebook.

Maybe responsible people at Nama need DStv Exploras so they can record and repeatedly watch some of the international awards to learn how it should be done.

At these glamorous awards, it is not just about who receives what accolade, but who is in attendance in terms of celebrity ranking and it is high time that Nama organisers go out of their way and consider other magnates who are the movers-and-shakers in as far as the Zimbabwean arts, entertainment and social scene is concerned.

These high-flying personalities can bring some dimension of allure and gloss to the event just by their mere presence, guest performances or presentations, while their fashion tastes will also help in boosting and making a statement to the artistes who will walk onto the podium to receive their trophies.

“The recent awards ceremony held in Bulawayo exposed a lot of fashion gaffes on a good part of Zimbabwean artistes who quite evidently do not make an effort in upping their fashion code. Seriously if we had the fashion police, many would rot in jail by now,” observed Kudakwashe Mariva, a fashion designer.

While it is understandable that the Zimbabwean arts scene is not as rewarding as compared to some of the industries in countries like South Africa, Nigeria, India and the United States, but artistes should always strive to take a leaf from their compatriots from outside by investing in acceptable outfits, because impressions, as they say, make a huge statement. How will the future generation of this country’s artistes view their icons when their doyens walk onto the “red carpet” donned in costumes that make even a street beggar in Harare’s First Street Mall blush?

We believe that there should be a dress code for all guests and the organisers should be strict about turning away people who are not dressed for the occasion. Even if they are the recipients of multiple awards!

There are a lot of clothing retailers and designers who would jump at the chance of dressing the stars at the show. And we are sure there are also many event managers and décor specialists just itching to take this ceremony to its potential heights.

So NACZ, please, next year give us a show we can drool over.
After all, you have the next 11 months to put it all together.