BY JONATHAN MBIRIYAMVEKA
CONT Mhlanga, who died at the age of 64, was diminutive and slightly built, but in every respect a giant of the Zimbabwean arts industry in his lifetime.
A good actor always knows when to exit the stage. In a nutshell, Cont Mhlanga was such a great actor.
Cont had retired for the past three years, leaving Amakhosi Theatre Productions – his beloved brainchild – in the hands of younger members of his iconic creative company.
A man who was passionate about his heritage, Cont had retired to his rural home in Lupane a proud villager by his own description of himself.
In Zimbabwe this feat is unheard of, for our leaders have a penchant to die in office.
“From time to time the youngsters come to me to consult but I refuse because I tell them consider me dead,” he told Gem Nation back in 2019.
“If I was in my grave would you come and ask? So they are now running the show and taking Amakhosi Theatre forward.”
Goatie-bearded, slim and tall, Mhlanga was a colossal figure in arts and culture in Zimbabwe.
He remained the same whether it was red carpet event or just an ordinary gathering Cont was just himself. Always dressed down in African attires and a beret.
And with or without money you wouldn’t tell because Cont looked simple and dressed simple. He was never one to show off but the one good thing he was always clear about his thoughts, feelings and character.
For those lucky enough to meeting him, Cont was made of sterner stuff, fearless but at the same time very humble. To an extent his brutal honesty came across as provocative much to the bemusement of the establishment.
I first knew Cont through Rooftop Promotions’ Daves Guzha, then I was a cub reporter at The Herald around 2005 when I joined the Entertainment Desk.
It was quite an honour to meet Cont who from the outset struck me as a smart and well-articulated fellow.
He knew his stuff and half the time he would give you quotable quotes during interviews. He was not forgetful he would remember everything he said.
So during my various interviews with Cont we got so close and whenever I would call he would respond with the word “Baba”.
There were two stories which I did and when the stories came out it made me look no ordinary arts reporter.
The first story was about his tiff with Albert Nyathi over the musical — Mzilikazi in February 2007 headlined Mhlanga hits out at Nyathi.
I spoke to both Nyathi and Cont but when the story came out it raffled some feathers.
Nyathi had claimed that the Mzilikazi musical was his idea and he had spoken about it with Cont and South Africa’s Bongeni Ngema.
Nyathi, fearing to be sidelined from the project, made it known that he was the brains behind the project and that he had discussed it with Mhlanga and Mbongeni Ngema on separate occasions.
But for some reason Cont being the man that he was, said “Everyone has an idea. You cannot move around with your idea without implementing it.”
Cont also described Nyathi as “childish and dishonest” for claiming that he initiated the idea of Mzilikazi, a musical which at the time was still in its infancy.
The other story was again an interview I did with Cont on 21 October 2019 when he came to Harare for a meeting with Guzha.
In that interview Cont told of how he was spending his retirement and enjoying his travels across the country.
During those travels Cont would hitch hike in ordinary buses meeting new people.
He said he would jump into a bus to an unknown destination and end up in some remote part of Zimbabwe.
To him language was not a barrier because he was conversant in several languages so he said.
So as we sat for the interview he said if he were to rewrite all his plays he would change everything.
The culture and heritage playwright said during his career spanning 38 years he wrote most of his plays with zeal but lacking knowledge of the real narrative.
“I am enjoying my holiday and I must say that I’m in a good space as a villager.
“I’ve been travelling a lot to destination anywhere because when I catch a lift and I see interesting people I stop by and talk to them, see how they do their things and learn.
“So I am learning a lot travelling from one place to another and meeting all kinds of people from different races, backgrounds and cultures.
“Interestingly, I am experiencing what freedom is about and learning from the elders and quite honestly, there is a lot that I didn’t know and if I were to rewrite all my plays I would change everything because what we said then is not the true narrative of our people and culture,” Cont said.
He explained further when pressed to comment on his retirement: “You see, when I was at Amakhosi I hardly had enough time to learn because everything I did was within time frames. So the knowledge that I have now means that I have been foolish for 38 years. There is something that elders know but young generation does not know.
“So far in my travels, I am discovering new things imagine if you follow the Arab trade you find that one chief leads you to the next chief. And again you go to places like Njelele where you find people from different places coming together for the dance festival and how up to 400 people gather for the event is a wonder,” he said.
It had been four and half years since Cont went into retirement but he said he was on a quest to find new knowledge from his new found hobby which is travelling.
“I am travelling a lot these days and I don’t choose where to go but I just get myself on the bus and drift away. I am happy I am living life not on stage but real life,” Cont said.
Since retiring from the creative industry Cont who is the chair of the Board of Amakhosi Theatre Productions Company said he was no longer directory involved in the day to day business of company.
Death robbed Zimbabwe’s creative sector of this inimitable character whose model turned arts into sustainable business.
Cont breathed his last on Monday 1 August 2022 at United Bulawayo Hospital (UBH) after battling with Pneumonia for 10 days. He was 64 years.
Unfortunately, Cont was expected to provide leadership and useful insights into the development trajectory of the film sector which is being re-engineered to contribute significantly to the economy leveraging on his career in the cultural and creative industries began which began in 1982 when he formed Amakhosi.
Cont an accomplished actor himself starred as Mtutureli Niekwu in an anti-apartheid movie A World Apart which was released in 1988.
In a career spanning decades Mhlanga wrote more than 20 plays which include The Good President, The End, Sinjalo, Children on Fire, Games and Bombs, Members only, Workshop Negative and Vikela.
He has three books to his name including the play “Nansi leNdoda” a former A level set book and “Ngakade Ngisazi” a collection of short stories.
He adapted this theatre play Stitsha for television and it became a series featuring the late Beater Mangethe on ZBC TV. The TV drama was a tension and struggle between Thuli played by Beater and her tough on-screen brother, Mopho. The narrative was hugely Zimbabwean showcasing compelling Zimbabwean stories by Zimbabweans.
Another of his plays Sinjalo explored everyday challenges in the life of two friends, Sakhamuzi (Ndebele) and Foromani. (Shona) a narrative which sought to teach the world that both Ndebele and Shona people of Zimbabwe could live together as friends with no enmity and prejudice.
He also created and developed Friday Live at Amakhosi a television show on ZBC where- live music bands would perform and competitions such as Dreams to Fame also discovered young talent as they targeted up-and-coming artistes. Later wrote and directed Amakorokoza, a very popular TV series then as he continued to push boundaries of public discourse on critical social issues.
Cont will be remembered for his life which he dedicated to the Cultural and Creative industries which he used to champion the human rights cause as well as articulating the socio-economic and political situation in Zimbabwe.
He was a great mentor who, through Amakhosi he has helped to discover and mentor some of the country’s talented artists and professional groups alike.
In 2021, Cont was one of the National Arts Merit Awards (NAMA) 40 Legends who were given honorary awards as part of Zimbabwe’s 40th Independence Anniversary.
Legends never die. Till we meet again!
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