Living The Great Life With Preven Reddy

Telling a story is no easy task and portraying a role that gets people on the edge adds more pressure to your day time job but when you have a passion of sending out a message in a positive way, then what you do becomes what you love and then its like you’ve never worked a day in your life.

Preven Reddy is the epitome of what South Africa is on the look out for. This multitalented actor who is also a comedian, producer and director, has now bagged a role on Etv’s Imbewu – The  Seed. 

The Bokem Legacy as usual got to the task of sharing his story of success we hope that this inspires you to never give up on your dreams!

1. Who is Preven Reddy and how would you describe yourself using 5 words?

Preven is a funny, goofy human being. The 5 words I would use to describe me are again, Goofy, Talkative, Friendly, Hungry (most of the time) and Loving.

2. At what age did you get into acting and what is it about acting that you love the most?

I was always into the arts from a young age. I remember always dancing and singing to Jam Alley whenever it came on. It was at 15 when I was cast in my first big musical which was ‘Hairspray’ directed by the late, legendary Themi Venturas that I decided that this was going to be what I do for a living.

3. You are a jack of all trades in the industry. You’ve directed, scripted and acted. From this list which ones do you enjoy the most and why?

Acting and writing take a great space in my heart. I particularly love writing comedy, be it for my stand-up shows or online material. The ability to make people laugh, even if it is just for a minute or two, is something I find extremely fulfilling. Whereas acting allows me to just play and fully immerse myself into someone who is completely different than me.

4. Lets talk about Facebook and you using your comedy to bring back smiles to faces of people. When did this idea develop and what was the main reason behind your Facebook videos?

So I never really planned on doing it, I was very much a stand-up / stage comedy. I knew that ‘facebook’ comedy was a completely different genre of comedy on its own. Once my first rant video went viral I immediately got in touch with a few online comedians, as the love and hate on the video was getting intense. That’s when I became friends with Tanz Govender (Adventures of 9Boy) and we both developed this sort of on going storyline with Aunty Vassie and her nephew. And since the first video I think doing more afterwards was the only natural thing to do.

5. Stage play is very close to your heart, what is the difference between stage play and shooting for a T.V series?

With the stage or any live performance, you only get one shot. It is make or break whereas with T.V you can do a take till it’s perfect. I love both mediums respectively, but theatre gave me my grounding and taught me to treat any performance be it stage, tv or film, like I only have one shot.

6. Talk to me about your role as Ash on Etv’s Imbewu – The Seed

Ash is as we’ve seen, a very fierce, no nonsense character. He is proud of who he is and he’s very much a voice for the LGBTQ community. He stands his ground and insists to Mr Maharaj that what him and Yuveer are, is okay. The approach and direction that the team wanted for the character was extremely important to me, as for them. We wanted to make sure that we did not misrepresent or stereotype this character as we knew he was going to be a voice for a lot people who are in similar relationships. So we needed to make him strong and defiant and think we sort of got it down lol.

7. Whilst at the topic of homosexuality, what are your views on parents who are not acceptive of their child’s sexual orientation?

I think this such a difficult topic. You know not all parents are the same, not all were raised the same. It is obviously harder in the indian community and that’s because families are so tightknit. We still unfortunately association homosexuality with shame and disgrace in most cases and that’s why I think a character like Ash, as well as the storyline is so important.

8. Lets talk about your family…

I have a very large family, my cousins are like my siblings. My aunts and uncles are all like my parents. But in my house it’s my mom, dad, younger sister and my 2 babies, macy and nala (my dogs!)

9. Who is your role model and why?

My mom (My dad has gotten okay with this answer haha) she is my very own Wonderwoman.

10. Your advise for aspiring actors out there.

Firstly, do! Go to auditions, go for classes. Never stop learning the craft. In this industry there are 1000’s of people who want to do the same thing. It’s your job to be unique and be well trained in what you do. And this biggest one is don’t be afraid to fail, it only helps learn what to do better the next time.

 

 

                                                                  Planting the seed with Prev R

• Your favorite curry?

Mutton

• Music or Movies?

Music

• Shark diving or ice skating?

Shark Diving!

• Day in a tank full of jelly wish or a tank full of snakes?

Jelly fish!

• How would you describe love?

ADELE.

 

The Bokem Legacy Team Wishes Preven Lots Of Success Going Foward.

Drop Us Your Comment Below About What You Think Of Preven’s Role As Ash On Etv’s IMBEWU – THE SEED