With her father as a prominent media personality, her mother thriving in the film industry, and her late mother being an esteemed acting veteran, Bahumi Mhlongo is more than ready to meet the high expectations placed upon her.

As the daughter of former Idols SA judge Somizi Mhlongo and actress Palesa Madisakwane, she embraces this legacy with confidence and conviction, proving that she is not intimidated by the weight of her family’s reputation.

In a recent interview on the renowned Engineer Your Life podcast, she opened up on what life on some of the challenges she has had to deal with, with the family surname resting on her shoulders.

Just like her parents, Bahumi was always going to be destined to find success, with a strong academic background which saw her studying Bachelor of Commerce, and later venturing into dramatic arts, her path to prominence was shaped by the rich lineage that she comes from, despite this, she highlights that getting into the entertainment space was not the easiest thing for her to do.

In her interview, she highlighted that her initial years breaking into the industry were met with much criticism from the public; this often resulted in many labeling her a “nepo baby” (short for nepotism).

“I have a complicated relationship with the term. I don’t hate it. I just don’t think there is anything wrong with people in your family helping you out with opportunities and resources.”