Andile Khumalo, Bheki Hlophe, Busani Ndwalane, Bonga Madlala, Mpho Mbili and Jackey Ngcobo co-star in ‘Ama Grootman’. Picture: X.
Despite “Ama Grootman” receiving some criticism for the shenanigans that its cast has gotten up to, one of its stars, Jackey Ngcobo, believes that the reality show is also aspirational.
The Mzansi Magic series, which tops the trending lists on social media when each episode drops, has been a riveting watch.
It delves into the lives of Port Shepstone’s most talked-about men as they immerse themselves in KwaZulu-Natal’s vibrant culture and navigate the challenges of success and personal growth.
They include Andile Khumalo, Bheki Hlophe, Busani Ndwalane, Bonga Madlala, and Mpho Mbili and Ngcobo.
However, some viewers have called out some of the men for their behaviour as they showcase their soft life.
Their values have been questioned as some introduced themselves as family-oriented men with children yet they were seen entertaining other women on camera.
And while the charismatic Ngcobo admitted that “Ama Grootman” does include some risque scenes, he explained that he and the rest of the group are determined to use the series as a platform to inspire others to also achieve success.
“The most important part is that the public will get to see exactly what we have been through and the progress of what it took for us to live a happy life,” he said in a recent interview.
“I won't call it a soft life but maybe sometimes in front of someone's eyes they will see that these guys are living a happy life but there is a history behind all of that.”
“We have grown up under hard times and we want to motivate people who feel like they are not progressing in life and we want to encourage them to work harder and to improve their own lives.”
On what he would ultimately like to achieve as one of the cast members, he said: “I want a large group of people to watch the show and to get some fun teachings from us.”
“Not the bad ones but more about how to be successful.”
Ngcobo added that it was a group decision between the cast, who are all close friends, to be part of the show.
He explained that part of the reason for this was to give viewers an unprecedented glimpse into what successful men from an older generation get up to in their free time.
“The reason for us to take this decision was to show the public most of the things that guys are doing when they are together and since it is a first men reality show like this, we decided to take the opportunity so that people will be able to better understand the challenges that we face and what we do when the guys are together.”
Ngcobo said that he anticipated online backlash before appearing on the show and that he mentally prepared himself for it.
“There are some public members that have negative comments, mostly on social media but fortunately, I am not too concerned about it,” he said.
“I don’t spend too much time on social media but some of my relatives would screenshot and send me some of the negative comments and I just try to ignore it.”
“It’s my life and nothing is going to change and whatever we shoot is the reality.”
He added: “I was worried that once you are popular with the public, people might start teasing you but I was prepared to face all of those things and I trained my mind for it.”
Ngcobo said that he and his loved ones are thrilled about him featuring on the show.
“I have watched all the episodes that have already aired and I am happy to see my face on TV.”
“I am the first one from my family to be on TV so my family, my fiancé and even my children have all been supportive and happy for me to be on the show.”
He did note his children have not been able to watch the show as they are too young for some of the explicit scenes.
On the show's popularity, he said: “The public is interested to see exactly what these older gentlemen are doing during their spare time.”
“There are some shocking episodes and I am sure they are interested to see what will be next.”