Keeping Up With The Mkhizes

Shauwn Mkhize shows YOU her luxurious home and talks about the new reality show she’s doing with kids Sbahle and Andile.

- Siyabonga Dzimbili

Stepping into the triple-storey La Lucia mansion near Durban is like walking into a showroom of glitz and dazzle.

An enormous glass chandelier hangs from the ceiling in the foyer, which is flanked by glass balustrades leading to two sets of stairs.

Each room has its own theme and features custom-made furniture and plush rugs spread across expansive floors. In one wing is an entertainment pad kitted out with a home theatre with cinema-style seats while another wing is home to a fleet of luxury vehicles.

Welcome to the home of Shauwn Mkhize, one of Durban’s most high-profile businesswomen. She shares the space with her two children, Sbahle (26) and Andile (18), after splitting from her businessman husband, Sbu Mpisane.

Shauwn and the kids are the talk of the town now thanks to their new reality show, Kwa Mam’Mkhize, which showcases their lavish lifestyle. But despite all the opulence and extravagance, they claim they’re just a regular family.

We’re welcomed at the house by image consultant Shaun Stylist, who ushers us up in a gold-plated elevator to meet Shauwn.

She and her son are dancing along to a song which, she explains, is Andile’s debut in the music world. There’s much laughter as the two break it down – but not everything around here is fun and games.

A high fence ringing the multi- millionrand property and round-the-clock security guards tell of a serious side to all this, and Shauwn says her and her family’s protection and privacy are her priority.

WHEN producer Legend Manqele approached her about making a reality show she wasn’t that keen at first, she says.

Legend – the same guy behind Bonang Matheba’s reality TV show Being Bonang – isn’t one to take no for an answer though.