Pebetse Nolo Matlaila, an actress, recently went on a podcast and spoke openly about her life, from childhood maltreatment to residing in New York for four years and her divorce.
Matlaila rose to prominence after appearing in SABC 1’s “Skeem Saam” as Mokgadi Matloga-Maputla, a journalist who eventually married Leeto Maputla.
On Varied Views with host Tele Alice Ledwaba, the radio presenter, novelist, and actor discussed the difficulties of transitioning from a teenager to a young adult when she moved overseas at the age of 19.
“I took the opportunity to live abroad and I went there when I was 19. And from 19 to 23 you are transitioning from a teenager to a young adult.
“So much happens to you psychologically, physically, mentally and socially. You are defining yourself as a person. It was an awkward time to be there because I did not have a mom to guide and I was literally on my own, I had to define myself,” Matlaila said.
Ledwaba asked her what happened to her life in America and how she manoeuvred her way through.
“I felt so lost in America, I was literally a lost soul in a foreign, unfamiliar land. But what helped me the most was my best friend, Thelma. We would just link up when we were homesick, and we made each other feel like home,” Matlaila said.
The 37-year-old mother also discussed how some of her childhood events influenced her life.
She stated that the issues she had at home had a significant impact on her life because she believed she never did well in school, was never pretty enough, and utilized academics to prove herself.
Matlaila also described how a close relative’s behavior had affected her life in all aspects.
“From the outside we looked like an average middle class family living in the suburbs, and life is kind of good. But if you come in behind those walls at night you would realise that there was something that my siblings and I were tolerating,” she said.
Matlaila stated that her close cousin, who was struggling with alcoholism, affected her since she did not want her friends to come over and visit because she was afraid of how he would behave in front of them.
She also revealed that men close to her shared similar tendencies with her family, which terrified her.
