Comedienne and content creator Awinja has taken her fans down memory lane with fresh details on how the abrupt end of the TV show Papa Shirandula forced her to venture into content creation.
Speaking during a show on a local TV station on Friday, January 17, 2024, the thespian noted that the show’s end pushed her to seek other avenues to sustain herself.
She added that the show ended at the exact time the COVID-19 pandemic had gripped Kenya, and that doing stuff online was one of the readily, if not the only, available options.
“Papa Shirandula ilikuja ikaisha but sikuisha. Of course. Nimeweza kumaintain lakini sijui nieleze aje. Lakini ni kuenda na times,” she said.
Social media and COVID
The comedienne, who has been making waves with Kenyan movies titled Disco Matanga on YouTube, recalled that social media became a source of livelihood during the isolation period of COVID-19.
She noted that the two coincidences— the show she starred in ending and the outbreak of COVID-19—were solely what drove her to explore social media content creation.
She recalled that while working as an actor in the show, things were usually planned out for her, and there was no pressure to seek other means of survival. But reality hit her after the show ended.
“Unajua social media ilicome na sasa nikatransition to the other world. Ee unajua pale sasa unasema ni ujipange. Ulikuwa umezoea hapa kuko hivi unatakiwa care of hivi na vile, vitu zimepangwa lakini sasa ni wewe ujipange. So tukatransit hii pande ingine ambayo ni mtandao and the rest is history.”
Hard worker
While responding to a question from the presenter on whether it was an idea she had from way back to become a YouTube creator or if it was because things went south, Awinja clarified that it was because she is a hard worker.
She hailed herself as someone who doesn’t like staying idle and doing nothing. She lamented how badly the pandemic had disrupted things, as there were no events where she could perform and earn something.
She clarified that that was when she decided to take her phone and do something, regardless of the fact that she was starting from scratch.
“Hata sikukuwa na idea necessarily. Na unaona hiyo time COVID ilikuwa. Hata events pia hazikuwa. Mimi naweza sema sipendi kuwa idle, sasa ikakuwa ni kuanza chini na niko na simu yangu, ikakuwa ni kuunda content na kuweka online watu waone wafurahi,” she said.
Radio presenting
Awinja then noted that she did many other gigs after that time, as content creation didn’t pick up immediately.
She said, however, that she never gave up or judged herself based on the jobs she was doing, as she knew that’s how life usually is.
“Yeah nilikuwanga radio. Wacha tuseme tu ni life tu. Hiyo time ya radio ilifika na kikafeel I’ve done my best. Experience imekuwa best. Nilitoka kwa hiyo space na nikaingia kwa space ingine.”
