Prev Reddy may have become synonymous with his Aunty Shamilla alter ego, but there is so much more to the talented 20-something actor and comedian.
Earlier this year, he retired his popular character, which he ended up touring London with last year. But he is grateful for the memories and cherishes the experience and the opportunities it brought.
I caught up with Reddy a few days after the 17th South African Film and Television Awards (Saftas). And he exuded the same excitement that he did on the red carpet.
He admitted: “I got invited to the Saftas for the first time in my life. It was so exciting. We got there so early. I was dressed by Preview Designer Collection.
“I can’t believe I’m telling you that. It was insane. I’ve been having a lot of fun with fashion and clothes lately.”
During our chat, Reddy, who studied scriptwriting, specialising in comedy at AFDA Durban, said he moved to Joburg when he graduated in 2017.
He revealed: “I worked in film and TV production as a PA and I was doing open mic auditions on the side. More open mic comedy than auditions, though, because roles for young Indian men or characters are so few and far between.
“Then I finally booked my first TV movie. And I lost the job the same day that I got it because I wasn’t available for one of the shoot days and that was like the final straw for me; I moved back home to Durban.”
In re-evaluating things, he created his first video of Aunty Shamilla. It turned out to be an overnight hit. And that’s when he realised he was onto something.
By drawing on personal experiences, his content, while entertaining, was also relatable. The overbearing mother-and-son dynamic was by far the most popular of his parodies.
While he was on the cusp of immeasurable success with his alter ego, he was invited to audition for “The Honeymoon” by Kajal Bagwandeen.
Reddy revealed: “It was my first feature film and it holds such a special place in my heart. And Bianca Isaacs (producer and director) is someone I look up to as an actor student. Kajal and I have been friends for quite some time. She approached me in 2019.”
But the movie was put on hold when Covid happened and then Bagwandeen and Minnie Dlamini both had their baby, so it took a little longer.
When the movie was released earlier this year, it was well received.
Reddy was also proud of his character Frankie, who was Kat’s (played by Bagwandeen) best friend. He kept it real with her and made sure she realised her dreams.
He shared: “It is new-age cinema and that is why I’m most proud of the movie and ‘Miseducation’. It tells stories with a refreshing outlook on SA.”
Interestingly, when he was approached for the role of Jay in the latter show, he turned it down.
He laughed: “At the beginning of the year, I was preparing to go on my one-man show without Aunty Shamilla. And I got a call from my agent saying she had sent me a brief.
“With Netflix and this show, everything was under wraps, we didn’t even know the title of the show until we got to the table read.
“I read the brief and environment it was set in. I was 26 and when I read the character I said, ‘Absolutely not’. I’m not 20 years old. I feel so old. I didn’t see it happening.”
But the creatives were unrelenting and asked for him to submit a self-tape all the same, which snowballed into him changing his mind.
Reddy, who moved back to Joburg last year, admitted: “It was a long process and I got to know more about the character and I realised what a huge deal it was in terms of the representation that the character is bringing.
“What made it so important as well is that he is openly gay. Throughout the show, his sexuality isn’t the point of his storyline, apart from his parents now knowing. I knew I had to represent the queer community, particularly in the Indian culture and community.
“You know it is often taboo to speak about it. I knew that we had the opportunity to do something different than what people would expect.”
The teen drama also touches on gender-based violence with his character.
“That scene with Caesar and Jay in the back seat of his car is so pivotal to the character’s storyline because it talks about him looking for love and trying to find the perfect partner. His entire perception of love is warped because of this experience.
“And that is the reality of so many queer men. I think it is a very important storyline because there are a lot of Caesars around.”
The storyline for “Miseducation” centres on three best friends: Jay, Mbali Hadebe (Buntu Petse) and Natalie Levin (Micaela Jade Tucker).
Mbali is trying to escape the scandalous story of her politician mother while studying at a place where no one knows her. But that doesn’t last long.
Reddy says Petse and he bonded right from their brief chemistry test.
“I think she has become my best friend in the whole world since we started shooting. We clicked from the first moment we had that audition together.
“The friendship between the trio was so important, that we knew in order to give it that authentic feel, we hung out as much as we could. We’ve become very close.”
With two solid roles in the bag, Reddy is also using it to reintroduce himself in the comedy arena.
The lesson here is, if at first you don’t succeed, try again. And that is exactly what he has done.
∎ “Miseducation” is streaming on Netflix.