The appearance is not Mseleku’s debut on a non-reality TV show. In 2024, he made a cameo on 'My Brother’s Keeper'.
In a true sense of art mimicking reality, popular polygamist and reality TV star Musa Mseleku will make an appearance on e.TV’s Scandal! this week.
“Featuring Musa Mseleku on this wedding episode marks a significant cultural crossover,” Scandal! Series Producer Sanele Zulu said.
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Mseleku on Scandal!
Mseleku will make an appearance during the on-screen wedding of characters Nhloso and Dintle, portrayed by Kwenzo Ngcobo and Mapaseka Koetle.
Nhloso is taking Dintle as a second wife. The move doesn’t sit well with Nhloso’s first wife, MaDlomo (played by Nombulelo Mhlongo), who thinks Nhloso hasn’t met some of her needs as the first wife.
Mseleku deals with similar issues on his reality TV show Mnakwethu.
“If the father is present, he can take a second wife. If he isn’t present, he’ll be showing that he doesn’t love or care for you,” says Mseleku in one scene, speaking to Nhloso’s first family.
Producer Zulu said Mseleku’s presence on the show embodies themes of tradition, influence, and community, “which are intricately woven into the narratives of Dintle and Nhloso, enhancing the depth and relevance of their storyline,” said Zulu.
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Mseleku’s debut
The Scandal! appearance is not Mseleku’s debut outside reality TV.
In 2024, he also made a cameo on Mzansi Magic’s My Brother’s Keeper.
Even on that show, he didn’t take up a character name but insisted on appearing as himself.
“I’ve told all productions that if they honour the Mseleku name, I’ll consider participating. But if they want to give me a different name, it becomes very difficult.
“In this particular production, they respected my name, which is why I agreed to do it,” Mseleku told the Daily Sun last year.
His appearance on My Brother’s Keeper was precisely like the upcoming one on Scandal! as he also played the role of mediator when one of the characters, Donga (played by Sdumo Mtshali), proposes to take a second wife.
Donga’s first wife, Khathazile (portrayed by Nelisa Mchunu), is the one who reaches out to Mseleku to help intervene because Donga wants to take Nkosazana (portrayed by Zola Mhlongo) as wife number two.
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Mseleku changing perceptions around polygamy
Ever since Msleku’s life came on screens in the form of the hit reality TV show, Uthando Nes’thembu in 2017, societal attitudes towards polygamy have shifted.
The demand for a show like Mnakwethu would probably not be where it is, had Mseleku not first introduced his family to many South Africans through Uthando Nes’thembu.
The popularity of Uthando Nes’thembu gave rise to spin-off shows like Mnakwethu and Izingane Zesthembu (a show revolving around Mseleku’s children).
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