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Patrick Shai struggled with suicide ideation for a while
Speakers at the funeral of Patrick Shai spoke about how he may have suffered secondary trauma through his work as an activist.
Late actor Patrick Shai. Picture: Twitter
Veteran actor Patrick Shai was laid to rest on Saturday at a heavily attended funeral in Soweto.
Fellow actors Sello Maake-ka Ncube and Nakedi Ribane served as the joined masters of ceremonies and saw to it that proceedings at the Soweto Theatre ran smoothly.
People such as Zwelinzima Vavi, actor Motlatsi Mafatshe and Israel Matseke-Zulu were in attendance.
His son, Lekhetho even sang during the funeral.
Speaking to Kaya FM News at the funeral, Mafatshe shared that Shai worked on a film for free and delivered as though he was still earning a salary from the project. The film is in post-production and Mafatshe did not confirm when it would be released.
Speakers throughout the funeral spoke to the kind of man they knew Patrick Shai to be and had nothing but kind words to say about the man he was as well as who he was in his professional life.
This is despite his widely known status as a reformed abuser.
READ: ‘Social media character assassination is breaking me’ – Patrick Shai
Due to the fact that his passing happened shortly after he challenged Cassper Nyovest to a boxing match and insulted his mother in a highly talked-about video, many have attributed his death (and the fact that he took his own life) to the backlash he received on social media thereafter.
However, numerous speakers at his funeral shared that Patrick Shai had privately battled suicide ideation for a prolonged period of time.
This caused viewers to share their thoughts on social media about how other men may be facing a battle similar to the one Shai faced. A number of speakers at his funeral, including his son Kopano, vowed to dedicate themselves to the cause of shining a light on the plight of gender-based violence. Namely, working with men and helping them find other outlets for their emotional issues.
Later on during the funeral, his daughter spoke about the man she called her hero. A man who wanted nothing more than to keep his family united.
“He wasn’t just my father, he was everyone’s father. My heart is very heavy… And now I am privileged to have him as an angel. An angel that I was not ready for but an angel that I have accepted.”
She also spoke about how Shai will be missed by his grandkids whom he often made an effort to spend time with.
“I can’t speak of you in the past tense because you live on in me. We love you deeply, today, yesterday and tomorrow.”
Her speech was followed by that of her brother Kopanp who had trended on social media after he allegedly lambasted his father for the video challenge to Cassper prior to him taking his own life.
Kopano described his father as an affectionate and fun-loving man.
At the time of writing, Patrick Shai’s funeral was still underway.
