Senior Arts Reporter
Denzel Burutsa who acted as Jabu in the soap Studio 263, has relocated to South Africa where he has ventured into the furniture business.
Burutsa who is based in Cape Town, opened up in an interview on marriage, acting and business.
The 40-year-old revealed that he has not quit acting as speculated by some of his fans, but the Covid-19 pandemic had made him shelve some of his projects, forcing him to embark on other ventures for survival.
“I am now based in South Africa where I am now working at a manufacturing company which makes furniture. I have been passionate about making furniture and steel fabrication as before when I was in Goromonzi. I had to stop that because of power cuts.
“We are making high-end furniture. I never quit acting but because of the current situation, it is difficult to move around. At the same time, I have shelved some of the projects that I have been working on.”
He said the lockdown had also been a blessing in disguise because he has used the opportunity to reflect on his life, meditating and focusing on 2021.
“I asked myself what do I want to achieve this year? Like most people, the lockdown restrictions and staying at home have helped me a lot to be a better man. It gave me a chance to reflect on life and how I take it for granted. Not mentioning the economic challenges it brought, the pressure, the pains, the ups and downs, this is still a wonderful world.”
Burutsa said he misses his three children back home who live with his ex-wife.
“I am a divorcé and for now I am not thinking of remarrying, but rather focus on business and acting. This pandemic will make you look like a bad parent if you do not have other alternative means of survival. I am single for now and I miss my daughter and two boys back home. The distance hasn’t been helping at all.”
He said apart from the furniture project, he is also working on other business although it was proving difficult to balance.
“I wish and wanted to venture into poultry project, but it required a lot of capital. Poultry is a numbers game, it has to be on a large scale to enjoy the economies of scale and smaller profit margins complimented by large volumes.”
The actor and businessman who featured in some of the local popular soaps and dramas said it was also difficult to establish which was the best role he cherished in most of the production.
“After Studio 263, I featured in ‘Wenera’, ‘Chenzira’, ‘Scars of Love’ and ‘Confessions’ among others. I have done many roles and I find it hard each time people ask me which was my favourite and best role I have acted. Every role is exciting on its own right. As an actor, you need diversity to be dynamic or you end up being stereotyped to one character. I have learnt to love all my roles equally – the more the challenging, the better it is,” he said.