The Wife actress Mandisa ‘Zikhona Sodlaka’ opens up on her relationship with Abdul Khoza

The Wife actress Mandisa ‘Zikhona Sodlaka’ opens up on her relationship with Abdul Khoza. Undoubtedly, she has been winning big of late with her unmatched acting flair. With an illustrious career spanning years, she has fast become one of Mzansi’s finest. Her onscreen character on The Wife has seen her making all sorts of headlines, from awards nominations to securing big-budget gigs.

There is no sign of ending her career. Mzansi is keen on getting to know what’s in the bag this time. With the popular Showmax drama The Wife returning for Season 3 this November, she has been topping trends. In the previous seasons, the drama series has been capped with drama and thrills that have since thrust the series amongst one of Mzanss most watched serials.

With season 3 slated for November, Kaya, 959 had a catch-up with fan-favourite Zikhona Sodlaka, affectionately known as Mandisa. Of interest is that the bubbly actress dived into her onscreen character, which is the complete opposite of her off-screen personality. The 37-year-old says they are very different in her similarities with Mandisa.

“I’m shy and quiet in real life, so it’s been really lovely playing somebody so loud.  That’s one of my favourite things about her: her absolute imperfection. Everything about her is so wrong to a person like myself, who likes to hold back.“

The Wife actress Mandisa ‘Zikhona Sodlaka’ takes a dive into her relationship with Abdul Khoza

Playing Mandisa has taught Zikhona to be a little braver.

“It doesn’t matter what she sounds like; it doesn’t matter what she looks like; it doesn’t matter what her size is. Which is something that was quite a sore point for me in Season 1 because I had just had a baby and I was just like, ‘Oh my God, do I want to play this role? Shouldn’t I wait until I’m an eight again?’ Playing her has taught me to be a little bit braver.”

Her onscreen chemistry with Abdul Khoza’s Nqoba is something to be admired. The actress attributes their connection to their characters’ dynamic yet similar characteristics.

“One is a female version of the other and vice versa. It then becomes completely unfair that we get to play so much on set. He is the scene partner I didn’t know I needed.”

Zikhona is not opposed to the idea of a Mandisa spin-off.

“I think the reason why people want a spin-off is because they do want to see that kind of love. That imperfect identifiable kind of love. The kind of love that is usually written about is fantasy. It’s like, ‘Oh, I wish I could be as pretty as…’ or ‘Oh, I wish I could cry as beautifully as…’ But with Nqoba and Mandisa, it’s very relatable. I think the spin-off would be dope.”