I am still healing and figuring things out

Vuyo Dabula has had some time off our screens after a tragic incident that led him to pause in his craft, heal and reflect. The Butcher’s Soul movie graces him right back before us through the character of Saul. TEMO MPODI caught up with him.

South Africans love you.

As an artist I create truthfully and honestly without intending necessarily to be celebrated. I bare my soul and express the character fully as well as I can, so to be acknowledged for the creativity and craft that I display is such an honour. For people to give their time to watch what I have created, when they could have watched any other thing, that’s incredible. I appreciate that.

You were shot two years ago that almost ended your career. But you rose. How do you view life now?

Even though life is fragile, and we come face to face with mortality, I found proof of love. How one sees the world matters. In instances like this, it signals the beauty and abundance that life offers. I still have my life, the use of my body. My ability to escape that incident was also a beautiful thing, although I am still healing emotionally and figuring things out.

Did The Butcher’s Soul evoke any emotions with regard to what you have been through?

No, not really. The character plays the aggressor. The Butcher kills in the movie, and he has his own way of taking lives, so there weren’t guns involved. I just felt at home. The last movie I did before that incident, Queen Sono, had a lot of shooting scenes, maybe if it was then, it would have been a different story.

Which role did you play in the movie?

I played Saul. In a nutshell, the butcher in the movie is developing a product, and something goes wrong that could destroy him, his name and his legacy. He’s an innocent man who then changes into a completely different person, character-wise. His other character, not previously seen, gets revealed and he then does some ugly things to survive. His darker side emerges and he goes on to fight and do anything to protect his legacy. I don’t want to give too many spoilers, though.

What can people expect from the new Vuyo?

I wouldn’t say there is a new me. There is a “new me” in terms of being blessed with life. Experience and life are things you can’t really teach, but maybe judgement. This character in The Butcher’s Soul taught me not to judge other people through the lens of my own eye, so I can pass that on.

What’s your favourite thing to do now?

I love nature, I love hiking, long solo drives and walks, the gym. I love things that bring me peace, and bring me to myself.

What was the last gift you received from someone?

A hamper from a production called Leburugraphy Pictures.