Meet Tshepo Chotelo, the face on your screen

Tshepo Chotelo, one of South Africa’s well-known faces on screen, made heads turn in his new film SeloMotho that was released on Wednesday night, 6 November.

The talented actor, who was once a small-town boy from North West and later attended Tshabelang Primary School in Kameelputs, is living his biggest passion and life-long dream. “I have always known that I belong in media and entertainment. At five years old, I used to dress up and perform on my grandmother’s front stoep. I would sing, act and dance. I think my family knew this too because every time there was a party or a gathering they would ask me to sing. So the love for arts and entertainment developed naturally from a very young age,” he stated with a smile.

Seven years ago, he decided to pursue his life-long dream, but unfortunately, life threw him a curve ball. He lost all hope when his life took a dark and sad turn. After losing everything, he felt hopeless, and attempted to commit suicide. But, God had bigger plans for him. Tshepo got back on his feet, and later in 2015 started to pursue his dream of acting.

“After five years of attending acting auditions and being given a ‘No’, I finally got a call in 2017 to be part of season 1 of Ikhaya. I played the role of Jabu and got an opportunity to work with the legendary Saint Seseli, who played Eddie. My role was small but I got recognised and that meant a lot to me,” he said.

He is also a prankster on Bheka Mina Ngedwa (Prank Show) that airs every Saturday at 8pm on MojaLove, a show on DStv channel 157. “On this show we prank people. It is a very fun and interesting show because you get to see how different people react to different situations,” he elaborated.

For Tshepo, the fascination of acting lies in one’s ability to portray a certain character and tell a story. “Telling a story through art just blows me away; the ability to change someone’s life, mindset and view of life is just magical,” he explained with excitement and a grateful smile.

He added that acting is not about the fame and fortune, but about his passion for living out his talent. “I am only doing what I love and that’s it. The fact that I get to be seen and appreciated by millions on screen is just the cherry on top. I make a point of understanding the character, and knowing the script and what I’m supposed to do. There is nothing as bad as getting on stage or in front of the camera unprepared. I learnt this during my time on radio because when you’re live, there is nothing you can reverse so you need to know your story,” said Tshepo.

He loves reading, and writing his own music pieces and productions, he enjoys watching all Harry Potter movies, and sees himself as a possible Lord Voldemort character in the movie.

After almost losing all hope, Tshepo came out stronger than ever. One day he would like to make the same change in the world, as God has made in his. “I want people to remember me for my hard work, dedication and Ubuntu. I want to leave a legacy that will continue to change lives even when I’m no more. I want to be remembered as a man who made his own mistakes like everybody else, a man who tried and failed many times, and a man who learnt to master the art of living his dream, regardless of the challenges he faced,” he concluded.

Watch a preview of some of his shows

Prankshow preview:

SeloMotho preview: