ARTS: No unfinished business for Mdara Danger

01 Nov, 2015 - 00:11 0 Views
ARTS: No unfinished business  for Mdara Danger Mdara Danger (centre) captured on set in a 90s movie

The Sunday Mail

Mdara Danger (centre) captured on set in a 90s movie

Mdara Danger (centre) captured on set in a 90s movie

WHILE the late Fidelis Cheza, popularly known as “Chikwama” or “Mdara Danger” after his roles in “Mukadota Family” and “Studio 263” respectively was also famous for his love of the wise waters, the veteran actor lived his life to the fullest.

Never mind that he was “just 67”, the jovial character died a peaceful death, or at least it appears so.

Moreover, there is consolation for the bereaved family, friends, fans and fellow actors as they still have a chance to watch the renowned Cheza in action in a yet to be released production, “Makunun’nu Maodzamoyo” in which he had a leading role.

Last week, the directors of the forthcoming film revealed that they pushed Cheza to do all his parts on the movie before his death.

Whether Jesesi Mungoshi and team were working on a hunch or they had spotted that life was escaping Mdara Danger’s skinny frame is subject for debate. What is certain is that the talented actor left no unfinished business.

“He was a genuine artiste and I’m pained by his death. We are certainly going to miss him in the industry,” said Mungoshi, the executive producer of the film.

“He had a main role in our film and by God’s grace we managed to push him to do all his parts although we are not yet done with filming. But this is not to say we knew he was going to die, we just felt it was good to capitalise on the time he availed himself.”
The film is expected to premiere by end of the year if the producers secure US$5 000 to finance the final stages of the project.
Being someone who had an open love for the wise waters, fans can be forgiven for thinking that Cheza died of alcohol abuse.
Just before his death, it is said he attended a wedding after party and came home in the early hours of the morning, hence the fears that the actor might have stretched his system beyond limits this time around.
It was considered “luck” to bump into a sober Cheza, especially around imbibing joints.
The late actor was a permanent feature at the popular “Mastones” in Highfield, which is a stone throw away from his home, where he took his last breathe last Sunday.
However, natural causes cannot be ruled out.
With close to seven decades on mother earth, Mdhara Danger’s contributions will remain etched on the minds of his fans.
Veteran actor, author and producer Aaron Chiundura Moyo described Cheza’s death as a major knock to the local film industry. The two worked together in the early days of Zimbabwe’s first soap opera, Studio 263.
“We have good actors that are coming through but we need actors of his calibre to come and close gaps that need elderly actors. The talented young actors will certainly not match or fit into such roles,” said Chiundura Moyo.
“We met at Studio 263 but he was more experienced than me. He started acting during the Rhodesian era. I can say he made his name or brand when he was with Mukadota (Safirio Madzikatire).”
Added Chiundura Moyo: “Though he loved his alcohol, when I worked with him he would come to work sober.
“However, visiting him would give a different picture. You would usually find him drunk and be forced to wait until he recovered.”
He further revealed that “the quiet and often smart guy” had challenges in mastering scripts assigned to him.
“Danger had serious problems in grasping his lines, he needed more time to grasp the concept. He was more of an action than dialogue man. That is why he had minor roles in most of the films he featured in. He got a major role in ‘Mukadota Family’, because the late Safirio did not use scripts,” he said.
The award-winning Cheza featured in numerous local and regional projects that saw him rubbing shoulders with some of Hollywood’s finest.
Some of the productions include “Quatermain II” (1987), “The Jungle Hell Is Going On”, “The Lost World”, “Back to the Lost World”, “The Track of the Wind” and “Bopha” (1993).
In 1997, he starred in an episode of the television series “Diamond” as well as in the film “Kini & Adams” as Tapera.
Mdara Danger, who would usually demand some alcohol before interviews with the press was buried last Tuesday at the Warren Hills Cemetery in Harare.
May His Soul Rest in
Eternal Peace.

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