What Heritage Day means to South Africa’s celebrities

Celebrated annually on 24 September, Heritage Day is a South African public holiday that honours the nation's rich cultural tapestry and the diverse beliefs and traditions of its people.

The day means different things for different people. IOL spoke to a few of Mzansi’s famous faces, Lerato Mokoka, Jessica Nkosi, Thabang Molaba, Thembi Seete, Pamela Mtanga and Ama Qamata, about what Heritage Day means to them.

Presenter and multimedia entrepreneur Mtanga, shared that Heritage Day, also happens to be her sister’s birthday, meaning a guaranteed celebration.

“For South Africa, I think they always say or most recently, 'Africa, your time is now'. It's always been our time. It's always been our time. We've always been so colourful, so beautiful, so cultural, beautiful people of South Africa have always just been so vibrant. Our culture is amazing.

“Our history is absolutely incredible, and it needs to be told. We need to be reminded and I think as Heritage Day approaches, Heritage Month as well, I think South Africans should just celebrate being authentically them wherever they go in the world,” said Mtanga.

Mokoka is well-known for her portrayal of Tshiamo on the Safta award-winning telenovela “Gomora”. She shared that Heritage Day to her means archiving our culture, archiving our history, and returning to our roots.

“I think people sometimes forget where they come from. We forget our culture, our traditions, our language. I think it's a good time to remember, to remind ourselves, and to embrace and express ourselves in our own cultures and traditions,” said Mokoka.

Actor Molabo of “Blood & Water: fame shared that for him Heritage Day means basically inheriting the historical infrastructures, buildings, and traditions of South Africa.

“Anything historical in the context of South African heritage, inheriting something from your ancestors, that's what it means to me,” said Molabo.

“Kings of Joburg” actress and musician Thembi Seete shared that Heritage Day is a very important day, as it reminds us who we are, our traditions, our cultures, our DNA, and where we come from.

“I am a big supporter of embracing who you are and staying authentic, because that's the one quality that separates you from the rest. 

“I'll take you back to my career with Boom Shaka. This is the reason why it’s standing and people are still singing along. It's because we took all the elements; everyone came in with the part of them, their culture, their tradition.

“What they grew up doing, in terms of our look, our dressing, our songs, what we represented, the messaging that came through our songs as well. Culture is a very important part of who we are, and it makes us great,” said Seete.

Actress Qamata, well known for her roles on “Blood &Water” and “Gomora” shared that for her; “Heritage Day is one of those days where I feel like South Africans just come together and we celebrate the beauty of our uniqueness but also just the pride of being South Africans under one nation.”

Former “The Queen” actress Nkosi shared that Heritage Day is a day of celebration. “Celebrating our culture, celebrating our diversity, our traditions. It's just a day to be in touch with who you are and to own who you are, where you're from.”

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