LISTEN: Rajesh Kumar pays tribute to Georgie 'Papa G' Zamdela

Lester Kiewit speaks to Jack Devnarain, Chairperson of the South African Guild of Actors (SAGA), and co-star of Darlington Michaels.

Beloved actor Darlington Michaels (real name, Teboho Ndarana) died at the age of 78 on Friday (13 September 2024). 

He is best known for his role as a flamboyant gangster named, Bra Georgie “Papa G” Zamdela in the now cancelled SABC3 soap opera, Isidingo. 

Michaels played the role of "Papa G" for over a decade. 

He also appeared in Netflix’s popular comedy drama, How to Ruin Christmas: The Funeral.

It's understood the former Isidingo star was recently admitted to Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital with breathing problems.

Co-star Devnarain, who played business tycoon Rajesh Kumar alongside Papa G, pays tribute to his colleague and friend, remembering Bra Georgie's character as "endearing, iconic and an original talent."

"He was such an iconic and original character... it was a brave choice to have him there and of course he became a hit across all audiences because he was such an original performer and he was so endearing to everyone."

- Jack Devnarain, SA Guild of Actors - Chairperson

"The charm about Georgie is that he had to have some kind of menace about him... he was a bully, a dangerous player, a loan shark... but he had a certain old school gangster dignity about him - he had a code of ethics despite his gangster background and it made him sort of a Robin Hood figure, it seemed as if he did play by rules but only he could figure out what those rules were."

- Jack Devnarain, SA Guild of Actors - Chairperson

"He knew for himself exactly how he wanted to speak, how he wanted to look and the expressions he wanted to use that were unique to him that really was his strength because he had a very clear vision for his character - that's how he remained iconic and memorable."

- Jack Devnarain, SA Guild of Actors - Chairperson

"He used to love surrounding himself with young performers and he used to have a very lively theatre incubator and he used to make sure he was churning out young performers... he used to thrive off the contemporary language and dynamic language used in Sophiatown so he liked learning from young people too. He was directly involved in the youth of the community and it's also how he gave back to a community who gave him so much." 

- Jack Devnarain, SA Guild of Actors - Chairperson