Here we are ‘femmenomenals’

EXCEPTIONAL LADIES

- RAVI GOVENDER

Jailoshini Naidoo

Dickens's words in Oliver Twist come to mind here: "the law is an ass." Certainly not always, and should not be at all. I decided to do the opposite in my column this week and highlight a few of what I coined “femmenomenal” women in our orbit.

I recently wrote a piece on local comedians and how talented they were. My wife, definitely at the top of my list of exceptional women, reminded me that I omitted to include Natasha Munien Portrag, popularly known as Bash with Tash. She bounced into our lives with no apology for anything. At first, she was picked on for being well-proportioned and generously-endowed. Some pee-brained detractors openly insulted and abused her. What she did was inspirational. She did not retaliate, but shone even more by getting out there and showing her talent for comedy.

She is now a household name and it is well-earned. Her beloved “Huncle” stood by her through thick and thin. Ouch!

I’m proud of you, Tash. Keep on being an inspiration. After all, “if I don't tell, who will tell?”

There’s nothing, I can add to the plaudits that define my dear friend and former colleague, Jailoshini Naidoo. Supremely talented, achingly funny and humble. She is so adept at her craft that one can never figure out when Aunty Rumba starts and Jailoshini enters. Aunty Rumba rocks our world.