The Nguzu Farm is representative of his wild and wonderful family and its accompanying dynamics. Despite all the conflict caused by differences in personalities, each of the members – the wives in this case, know who they are, as well as the important roles they play in the running of the household. Using the “shopping basket” method, let’s look at who’s who on the family (fruit) tree.

Prickly pear Nancy



Despite her ‘’Let’s smile and be friends” demeanour, Nancy isn’t one to entertain disrespect. Though hardly on the farm and therefore excluded from most activities (and drama to be honest), her presence is as controversial as the self-sustaining prickly pear. You can look but don’t you dare touch, unless you’re well versed in handling dangerous edibles. Think of all the times Nancy’s put the other wives in their places and defended her own honour despite not speaking the language. You touch, you bleed!

Strawberry Tamtam



Describing Tamara as a handful would be a complete understatement because, despite the impressive number of willing hands on the farm, they wouldn’t be able to collectively contain her If they tried. Bold and pleasing to the eye (just like a strawberry), Tamara will sell anyone a bag of sugar that’s anything but sweet. Didn’t she convince Nguzu and everyone else that Mainza was hers despite Dorcas’ sworn testimony? Uh-huh! You absolutely can’t place Tamara on the flavour scale, but what we do know is anyone that has come across Tamtam has discovered the “sour” very quickly. Tread carefully!

Grapefruit Guru



We’re sure you also agree that with Mai Guru it’s either black, or white. No grey areas. Everyone recognises her contributions to the family and as such, she feels absolutely no need to please because that’s never the aim – not even with her husband Nguzu. This was made evident when she openly plotted to take over the farm and make Nguzu pay for betraying her six times over. Now, this obviously backfired because Nguzu recovered his estate but Junza isn’t a tad bit apologetic. The grapefruit just isn’t sweet, and that’s okay.

Shupi pineapple



Shupiwe is such an open book, it’s become public knowledge that she’s sweet but hard enough to cause a grown man’s fall. Shupiwe’s favourite part of living on the farm is discovering other people’s secrets and laughing about them. While this is the prickly side of her, she’s loyal enough to keep secrets to herself for peace’s sake.
When everyone finally discovered that Tionenji was in fact her daughter and not her younger sister as she’d initially claimed, she skillfully defended her honour and before anyone knew it, they were all feasting on her sweet slices. A trait Nguzu obviously appreciates about his talkative wife.

Mango Mwinza



Without intending to sow division in the household, Mwinza is probably the sweetest of the seven wives (soon to be eight should Charity be welcomed into the family) and Nguzu is very aware of this. While the others demand quick solutions when things go wrong, Mwinza almost always remembers that their husband is human too. The mango is hardly deceitful during harvest. If it’s green, it’s raw ­– and if it’s too soft, it’s possibly spoilt. With Mwinza, what you see is really what you get. If you decide to indulge while sour, the fault is yours. Her biggest misdeed was when she decided enough was enough and found love elsewhere (Nguzu was under Monde’s spell then) but she’s been loyal since.

Sweet potato Monde



At first glance, sweet potatoes don’t really get much credit for their versatility and are only appreciated once boiled or cooked - and that’s Monde for you. Outside the grand gestures and hilltop climbing, Nguzu never really looks her way. This isn’t because he doesn’t love her though. Remember when Monde once sought supernatural aid to encourage her husband to pay attention to her and it proved futile in the end because Nguzu finally expressed just how much she meant to him, despite his inability to show it sometimes? Sweet potatoes are wonderful delicacies if you give them time to cook. We love us some Monde!

Blueberry Tombi



Berries are generally tiny – and to enjoy their full flavour, one must have way more than one. Tombi is probably the quietest of the wives and usually only manages to get her message across when cheered on by Shupiwe. While the other fruit can be enjoyed on their own, blueberries are usually an option on a platter. Besides having spent a few nights in prison and breaking free thanks to Shupiwe (her cheerleader, remember?), Tombi does not have much of a negative history on the farm and just like Monde, needs a little more attention from her husband. All in good time!

It doesn’t end here though because by the looks of things, Charity might just make the list and we’re not certain what fruit would best represent her nature. For now though, the wonderful women above colour Nguzu’s life. Lucky man, right?

Tune in to #ZMMpali every Monday to Thursday at 20:30hrs on #ZambeziMagic CH 162 and watch all the drama unfold.