Shorty's Shavaughn 'MY MOST TERRIFYING ROLE'

The former Shorty star has a surprise for family watching her latest TV show

- Kasia De Vydt-Jillings

For Shavaughn Ruakere, slipping back into scrubs on the set of the highly anticipated Māori drama series Tangata Pai felt like taking a familiar step back in time.

"With my scrubs and lanyard on, I was like, 'Oh, this is so Shorty," laughs Shavaughn, 47, remembering her years on Shortland Street as nurse Roimata.

But the similarities end there. This time, Shavaughn isn't striding into Ferndale's favourite hospital. Instead, she's back in her hometown of Taranaki, playing Hinewai Smith, the head emergency department nurse in a story that is proudly Māori.

"To be asked to be part of something filmed in my home town was amazing," shares Shavaughn, whose iwi is Taranaki and Te Atiawa. "We see so much of the beautiful East Coast and the stunning South Island, but I haven't really seen Taranaki on screen much, except when Tom Cruise shot The Last Samurai here and our maunga was Mt Fuji.

"Any time I go home, when I get that first glimpse of the maunga, it's like taking a big breath. And now, seeing him on screen, it's glorious."

Stepping into Hinewai's shoes wasn't just another role for Shavaughn. It was also a personal journey that saw her remember her late dad, Dr Tony Ruakere, and reflect on the women who have inspired her, as well as her own ongoing journey of language reclamation.

"My dad was Māori and my mum Pākehā," she tells.

"Growing up, we didn't feel like we were really part of that world. We'd go to the marae sometimes, but also sometimes feel a bit scared and sit in the car." The youngest of four children, Shavaughn distinctly remembers when her dad decided in his seventies to learn te reo Māori something his generation faced physical punishment for at school.