Samantha 'Gonyet' Kureya

Background

Kureya did her schooling at Mufakose High School in Mufakose Harare. Kureya has said she followed her mother's footsteps into acting. She started acting in 2008.

Kureya mentioned that she wanted to be a nurse since she was a child. Kureya only realized that she wanted to be in the entertainment industry when she accompanied her mother – who played “Mai Tonde” in local drama “Togarasei” – for rehearsals. “I started acting in 2008 by accident when I was offered a role after I had accompanied my mom for rehearsals. I tried and the producers were impressed,” said Kureya. ^[1]

Career

Kureya gives credit to Doc Vikela and Lucky Aaroni, who inspired her to take up stand-up comedy seriously.

“I first met Lucky at an audition for ‘Tiriparwendo’, although we did not interact much.

“In 2012, we worked together on a feature film, ‘Two Villages Apart’ and a couple more productions, where we strengthened our cordial relations. I first met Doc Vikela when he came to Bustop TV as a guest.”

Her first stand-up performance was on Doc’s birthday, which she reluctantly performed after being persuaded by Aaroni and Doc Vikela.

“I tried, by all means, to convince them that I was not ready but they insisted that I should perform. It was however not bad, considering that it was my first time.

Her biggest breakthrough in stand-up comedy was when she performed at the “Let’s Laugh Again” comedy festival which featured renowned Ugandan comedian Anne Kansiime.

The name Gonyeti, which is a Shona informal name for haulage truck, was derived from the role she once had when she was still with P.O. Box production house.

“The name emanated from one of the skits I did with Boss Kedha and Bhutisi of PO Box.

“The two were refilling the potholes and their aim was to collect money from vehicles but unfortunately no vehicle passed through. They saw me coming and said look at that Gonyeti coming, since I am heavily built, and the name stuck,”

Gonyeti says the experience she got from PO Box comedy production honed her skills in stand-up comedy.

“I enjoyed working with PO Box and the experience was just awesome. Yes, we are now in competition, but we are also brothers and sisters in the sector.”

Kureya believes that the future is bright, adding that she would want to start a charitable organisation and assist the less privileged in the society.

“There are a lot of talented people, who are not able to use their ingenuity because they come from disadvantaged backgrounds. ‘‘I am where I am today because of a helping hand from concerned parties.”

Contrary to the image that Kureya portrays during stand-up comedy of a confident, aggressive and pompous individual, she is very shy.^[1]

Films

• Two villages apart

P.o. Box Facebook Videos

In the second half of 2015, Kureya joined comedy show Po. Box after the main acts of the show, Bhutisi and Boss Keda left to form their own P.o. Box Reloaded comedy show. On the show, Kureya whose character is Gonyeti appears alongside fellow comedians Maggie and Prosper Ngomashi

Popular Videos

Trivia

• Kureya's mother Mirriam Mavhudzi is an actress. She acted in two TV drama series – Togara Sei? and Toita Sei? – where she performed the role of Mai Tonde.

References