17-07-2025
Thulisile Phongolo exits Generations: The Legacy... again
She made a name for herself when she joined one of Mzansi's top shows, Generations: The Legacy, where she played the character Namhla, daughter of notorious gangster Jack Mabaso and dodgy businesswoman Lucy Diale.
In March 2018, after being with the show for four years, actress Thulisile Phongolo announced her departure from the SABC1 show, leaving her legion of fans heartbroken.
After gaining popularity on the show, she decided to pursue a career as a DJ - something that her industry peers, such as Dineo Ranaka, Pearl Thusi and others, were venturing into at the time.
Her never-say-die attitude made it possible for her to thrive in the male-dominated space.
While pursuing her career as a DJ, she met DJ Maphorisa, whose real name is Themba Sekowe, and the pair became the country's IT couple.
Last year, on July 1, the actress announced that she was a single woman. The break-up was triggered by a highly publicised alleged assault case. Maphorisa was arrested on May 7, 2023, and released on R4,000 bail by the Randburg Magistrates Court. She later reportedly dropped the assault charges against the multi-platinum selling DJ.
Read more | 'I know dancing is not a natural thing for me' – Thuli Phongolo responds to criticism of 2Faced
When news swirled about Thuli's imminent return to the small screen, her throngs of fans were elated to have the star back on the small screen. But her recent abrupt departure for the second time left many of her fans with lingering questions.
According to well-placed sources, who revealed titbits to Drum about her departure from the show, her departure was amicable, and it was caused by her extremely 'busy schedule'.
'She is a busy human being, so the schedules clashed; she couldn't do everything that she does all at the same time, so that's why she left,' a source reveals.
'When she returned, dynamics in her life were different, so that's also another contributing factor to her short return to the show.'
Another source says that because her DJ career was doing well, she was travelling a lot and didn't have much time to be shooting every day, as the daily show demands.
'She's a globetrotter, so she couldn't fully commit to Generations as before when she didn't have a hectic schedule. Now she travels quite often, which takes most of her time, and that's part of the reason she couldn't go back on a full-time basis,' explains the source.
Read more | End not yet in sight for popular amapiano DJ Maphorisa even though Thuli P withdrew assault charges
'It's sad that some of her fans won't see her again on the show, because of her other commitments that bind her.'
However, according to Generations: The Legacy's publicity manager, Eugene Cele, Thulisile had a short stint this time with the show, because of the understanding that she couldn't be available for a long period, owing to her busy working schedule, which included constant travelling.'
'She was only meant to be back on the show for two months. That was the understanding, because of how busy she is,' he says.
Her character wasn't killed off, so it remains to be seen whether or not the actress will someday reprise her role on the show in the future.
