5MINUTES WITH STANDUP COMEDIAN Celeste Ntuli

By Temo Mpodi

1.Comedy is so natural to you. Has it always been a childhood dream?

When I was young, I had no idea I would become a comedian. I didn’t even know there was such a thing called comedy. The only thing I knew for sure was that “One day I will be somebody”. I remember the very first time I saw Whoopi Goldberg’s image in a magazine and having an inexplicable spark of recognition. I didn’t know who she was and what she was doing, but her image sent a thousand affirming words to me. It was a feeling I still can’t describe.

2. Your first quarter of the year has been quite interesting, including “The Showmax Roast of Minnie Dlamini?” How did that go?

The Laugh Africa festival was epic for the comedy industry. The Roast of Minnie Dlamini was amazing to everyone who attended the recording, and it sure brought the heat. This was the second time in a row that I wasn’t on the roast seat, and that gave me the serenity to fully enjoy it, as if it was my first experience on the other side.

3.What’s “Celeste and da big dudes” all about?

Celeste and Da Big Dudes is a comedy show that I host. I started it last year on my birthday, and it’s even bigger in August this year, the numbers attending have grown unimaginably. I will be hosting it at the ICC Durban, Emperors Palace and Grand West Arena, and I have partnered with Doek On Fleek Lifestyle. I also have the best headline comedians. Skhumba Hlophe, Mpho Popps, Ndumiso Lindi, Mojak Lehoko, Robby Collins, Sandile Makhanya and Simphiwe Shembe.

4. You sure do. What does the rest of year look like?

I have a show in London on the 1st of September 2024 at Leicester Square. This will be the second time I have a show in that theatre.

5. Mother’s Day is almost here. Best advice your mother gave you?

“Be kind to yourself, others, your surroundings, and your environment.” I find that life is so much easier when we are kind, the universe sends it back to us tenfold.