From dentures to apertures and adventures

IN OUR good city of Durban, lives a colourful character named Eubulus Timothy. Getting to make an appointment with him is as difficult as pulling teeth, which for him is child’s play, as he is a professional and experienced dental surgeon.

Yes, I know that is a mouthful of an introduction, but necessary for the two people in the city who have not heard of this local legend. His name is as noble as is the definition of the nomenclature. It is derived from the ancient Greek word Eubouleus, which means good counsel, prudent or one who is wise in counsel. In this case it is wholly apropos.

It also refers to a God, but let’s leave that aspect alone for fear of this column being labelled blasphemous.

Talking religion, Eubulus was a lesser-known figure in the New Testament of the Bible. He was a friend of the Apostle Paul and gets honourable mention in Paul’s second letter to Timothy (amazing coincidence) in chapter four and verse 21. Now that we have tied both names in harmony, let's look closer at our own celebrated hero, Dr Eubulus Timothy.

Let me just add that in ancient times the name Eubulus was popular with sages, bankers and politicians. Let’s focus here.

The good doctor says: “When I was a teen, my mom got my dad to send me to London. I realised that I was from Durban and thus we spoke proper English and that I was smarter than most English. I thereafter spent seven years in a village in the south of India. When I returned as a dentist, after passing my registration exams, I worked in PE and then spent 13 years in Cape Town. We then moved to Johannesburg for two years and subsequently seven years in Los Angeles."

To call the doctor a well-travelled man would be an understatement. We are fortunate to have his vast knowledge and worldly-wise experience back home in Durban. However, let us rewind this non-fiction movie back in time.

Little Eubulus Timothy was born in Durban and spent most of his childhood in Goodhope Centre, Queen Street. He attended Hindu Tamil Primary School, Greyville Primary and later Orient Islamic High School. He did his O and A levels in London. Dr Timothy is a qualified dental surgeon via Manipal University in Bangalore.

Now here is where I get envious of the good doctor.

He has spent quality time in Hollywood. Since a kid, he had been in thrall of films and film-making. Here is where my life lies parallel with the Doc. I grew up in central Durban, surrounded by cinemas and it was almost a religion for my late dear brother, Rajin, and I to attend a movie house weekly, and sometimes more than once a week.

Eubulus also confesses to sneaking into cinemas when young. However, he has achieved his dream of making movies as a director, while I am a closet film director. Hopefully I will come out of the closet soon. Hello, I am speaking about the movie closet so don’t get any ideas.

Back to reality. When Eubulus was in Hollywood, he was trained as a film director under Randy Zisk, who is famous for television series such as Monk, Desperate Housewives and Grey’s Anatomy. He was also tutored by Allan Arkush of Heroes, Ally McBeal and Melrose Place fame. Eubulus subsequently won the Hartley Merrill Screenwriting Award, which was presented to him by the late legendary film director Irvin Kershner.

Kershner made movies like Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, the suspense classic The Eyes of Laura Mars with the amazing Faye Dunaway, as well as the renegade James Bond movie, Never Say Never Again with an ageing Sean Connery.

He was privileged to hobnob with A-listers of the movie world such as, among others, Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze and he sat next to Samuel Jackson at a film premiere. The green monster surfaced again when he mentioned that he had met Eva Longoria. There is so much to say regarding his multiple achievements but space inhibits that.

Eubulus did a short Spanish film, El Gotico that starred Rosanna Tavares from Eden’s Crush and the gorgeous Nicole Scherzinger (“Don’t cha wish your girlfriend was hot like me?”) He also did a great version of Shakespeare’s Othello. He directed Deep End in 2018, which was filmed practically in my backyard and that being the Durban beach.

Chatting to Eubulus, he has some very interesting film projects in the pipeline and I intend to inveigle myself into them even if it means being the teaboy on set. So, what is the legacy plan to further the Timothy film franchise?

His daughter Teerajeh, who holds a degree in English and is in the final year of law, already plays an active role in the movies. She has co-written and also does technical work on daddy’s films. A UN scholarship to UCT to study film impact didn’t hurt.

Eubulus Timothy! Remember the name as it is going to be mentioned aplenty in the next few months. Following a glamorous premiere today (my birthday), his latest film The Cane Cutter will release nationwide on November 21. Having seen the trailer, this film is a must-watch. The story is unique and the concept is brilliant. How can it go wrong with the participation of luminaries like Devi Sankaree-Govender, Sam Ramsamy, Ela Gandhi, Ashwin Desai, Karthy Govender and more.

All I need to say now to Eubulus as is the norm in the stage/film industry: “Break a leg, Doc, not a tooth please”

Ravi Govender is a former POST sub-editor and Lotus FM radio presenter. He is a published author, a freelance editor and film producer in training. He can be contacted at: [email protected]

** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media. 

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