At the 12th Annual Shield Heritage Awards held recently in Mbombela, Mpumalanga province, Indlondlo Cultural Village, located in the beautiful Valley of the a 1000 Hills outside Durban, was announced as the winner of the Preferred Heritage Destination by the National Heritage Council (NHC), pipping other finalists !Khwa ttu San Culture and Education Centre in the Western Cape and the Hector Pieterson Museum in Soweto.
The Golden Shield Heritage Awards honour individuals, organisations, and communities who have made significant contributions towards the preservation, protection, and promotion of South Africa’s cultural heritage- recognising grassroots heritage champions and unsung heroes and promoting nation building and social cohesion through heritage. And Indlondlo Cultural Village is one hitherto unsung grassroots champion.
We are very excited that- finally- the National Heritage Council has recognised us, a small village that was founded in 2018 when our local chief granted us the land – Msizeni Mngadi (founder)
The group was established in 2010 through gathering young boys together to perform the Zulu dance (ukusina) with the warrior dance (indlamu) being introduced later. It was Mngadi that created the structure- dance materials such as drums and sticks and the attire, entering competitions, playing for free entertainment, which was and still is their strong point – doing it for the love of it, not necessarily for compensation.
It’s not just about dance performances. Indlondlo Cultural Village provides cultural experiences: people can stay and immerse themselves in Zulu culture for the day, or for several days. There’s a rondavel, Wendy house and camping and caravanning options (bring your linen, blanket), all in tranquil surroundings overlooking the Msunduzi River.
Apart from the performances and being in a traditional Zulu homestead, with a resident Isangoma, the village demonstrates and teaches about beadmaking, grinding of mealie meal, herding and feeding of livestock, stick fighting, mat making, food storage (inqolobane), Ancestors House, a traditional buffet, marriage proposal by the river (ukweshela), indigenous games, etc.
We initially developed without government support, using performance fees and my own income and, so, many people came to know of our work – and then, recently, we received a letter saying we were finalists in the Shield Heritage Awards. Wow! – Msizeni Mngadi (founder)
Winning the Shield Heritage Awards is a wonderful reward and impetus for forwarding the objectives of Indlondlo Cultural Village. These include: Having a direct impact on youth education in cultural activities; teaching and instilling respect of one another to young and old, establishing youth development programmes in all arts; promoting social activities that keep youth away from bad influences; educating youth about the importance of education, disadvantages of teenage pregnancy, living a positive life with good purposes and dreams- and to create jobs in the community, to exchange traditional outfits with other nations, show the importance of tradition and customs and create means for the cultural village to welcome people from around the world to experience warmth that we possess in our country.
“The criteria for the awards involved entering in a relevant category and getting someone to nominate us by sharing our profile and showing that we deserved to win” Mngadi explains. That someone is actress, filmmaker and dance choreographer Portia Mncwane, who’s documentary film, Tales of a Zulu Folk Dancer- Igida Ngoma II, is a film award nominee. Mncwane has no direct connection or relationship with Indlondlo Cultural Village. “She knows our work, just as many do.” Mngadi shrugs. Those ‘many’ include tourists visiting South Africa on international cruise ships, as well as teaching on board cruises, and wowing audiences and participants at the 2016 Latium Folkloric Festival in Italy.
Importantly, the village aims to bring about change in the way today’s youth look at cultural and yester-years activities.
Traditional dances and related activities are perceived as barbaric by certain youth and we are changing that, so they see the value of keeping our history alive – Msizeni Mngadi (founder)
Good to Know
To find out more about the Indlondlo Cultural Village simply visit their website or send them an email; you can also reach out to them via their social media channels; Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.