When interviewer Margaret von Klemperer met award-winning author and playwright Ronnie Govender at the Playhouse in Durban to talk about his new memoir, In the Manure, she had to contend with a steady stream of friends and well wishers.
But between the hugs and happiness from fellow attendees at the International Society for the Performing Arts Congress, von Klemperer managed to tease out some quotable quotes, like this on writing: “Crafting the word is the important thing — you can grab a word out of nowhere and give it life,” says Govender.
When asked which of his works he liked best, he replied, “That’s like asking a father which of his children is his favourite.” Read on for more from this inimitable character who, according to the interview, is also slow to shy away from a fight:
“Too many people — blacks and whites — have this image of the Indian as a successful businessman — end of story. But my grandfather carried buckets of water to his market garden every day until he died.” Govender’s grandfather, Veerasamy Govender, features in the book, obviously a figure of affection and respect to his grandson, who is now himself a grandfather.
Govender may be retired, but that has not stopped him writing. He has written a film script from The Song of the Atman and while he says he is not prepared to play the kind of games he says are sometimes needed to get a film made — and which he describes in terms that could land us both in the manure if repeated here — he is hopeful that something will happen. And he has just finished a draft of a novel based on The Lahnee’s Pleasure. That should be something close to his heart. Retirement does not mean slowing down for Govender.
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