Oct 2020 - Ballito Umhl

From stage to screen
Having made her way from the big stage to the small screen, Verulam born awardwinning
actress Samantha Govender tells us about her career, her new role on a wellknown
e.tv drama series and why theatre will always be her first love.
Text: Leah Shone
Theatre and acting were always in the
stars for Samantha. From dancing and
imitating others in front of the mirror
as a child, to writing and directing
plays and winning drama awards
at school - she was simply born to
entertain.
And entertain she has. Over the years,
Samantha has won a host of awards,
performed in a string of theatre and
comedy productions and, in her most
recent part on the e.tv drama series,
Imbewu: The Seed, she plays the role
of a strong female lead character
named Aunty Jyothi.
Coming from what she calls a simple,
grounded and spiritual life growing
up (her mother was a single parent
raising four children on her own),
Samantha says she always felt carefree
and uninhibited as a child. “My mom
firmly believed that prayer and
education would be the key to our
riches in the world and lead to selfempowerment.”
After school Samantha completed a
B.A degree in drama and performance
studies, media communication and
English. While studying she found
her acting feet performing in drama
department productions and, in her
final year, she was cast as the lead
actress in a play called Bad Girls Go
to Heaven, in association with The
Playhouse Company. She later did her
post-graduate degree in education
and has a Cambridge certificate in
English.
After winning a ‘best newcomer’
award at the Mercury Durban
Theatre Awards for her role Bad Girls
Go To Heaven, Samantha went on
to perform in various theatre and
television productions.
“I’ve starred as the lead actress,
Pushpa, in the film Pushpa’s Love
Samantha has won a host of awards and performed
in a string of theatre and comedy productions
14 Get It • Ballito Umhlanga October 2020