Mwende Says

The More Things Change is a fiction anthology feature film from the Nest Collective 2 years in the making, that was released this month and premiered at the NBO Festival. Made in partnership with Forum Civ, as part of the Wajibu Wetu program, it is a unique narrative of exploring political resistance in Kenya through different eras including a speculative future. Co-directed by Collective members Akati Khasiani and Mars Maasai, the film explores what happens when an ordinary girl takes on a powerful adversary at great personal cost. It stars Nyawara Ndambia (Supa Modo), Melvin Alusa (Mission To Rescue, Crime and Justice, The First Grader, The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind), Bryan Ngatia (Too Early For Birds), Emmanuel Mugo (Sense8, Pillow Talk, This Is Life) and young luminary Stycie Waweru (Supa Modo, Just In Time, Lusala). Dr. Akati Khasiani is a storyteller and musician. She DJs under the name Atiani, favouring old-skool and throwback mixes. She is one of the lead artists behind Strictly Silk, a unique dance party whose guests, artists and service providers are diverse women and non-binary people only. She has a strong interest in the presence and participation of queer persons and femmes in and around African cultures, communities and spiritualities. Her work has been published at Jalada Africa, and she has been expanding her storytelling practice into film and other genres.

This is the recording of a Twitter space I moderated on digital safety for women and how especially the media shapes these conversations in collaboration with Pollicy. The amazing speakers included Abigail Arunga, Cecilia Maundu and Bina Maseno.

The internet is the knowledge hub of the world and African voices and work is still not as visible as it should be. I give my two cents of why it's important to curate and document and some of my experiences when it comes to research.

Mwende Says is back with Season 2 after a break and I'm super excited to share new content with you! Tune in every Wednesday for new episodes.

2020 has been a ridiculously unprecedented year. Most of the year is a blur to me. It simultaneously feels like a few months and a few years. I've been on the edge majority of the year and I can't even tell you how I managed to get through most of the year. So on this episode, I share what 2020 taught me, with the help of a few friends who've been kind enough to send in their voice notes.

I had a great conversation with Sam Soko, the Director of Softie, a documentary film about activist Boniface Mwangi, his wife Njeri and their children.

I'm back to the podcast after taking an impromptu mental health break. With all that is going on in the world right now, I definitely needed the breather. I felt like I'd lost Mwende Magic and needed to find it again. It took a little longer than I'd have liked, but though I'm not yet at 100%, I'm feeling more in sync with the work I'm doing and the direction I'm going in. Next week we go back to regular programming and I'm pretty excited! Thank you for all your support and to everyone that checked in.

This week's episode is mini reviews of some of my favourite African TV shows and films including Queen Sono, Blood & Water, Kina, Supa Modo, Katikati, Plan B, Living in Bondage: Breaking Free and Cook Off. I also highlight the ongoing conversation on social media around the mistreatment of Kenyan creatives, that's under the hashtag #KECreativesDeserveBetter Twitter handle @WatchdogKE

For this episode, I'm basically going on a rant on racism, imperialism, police brutality and imagining freedom. So I may not be as eloquent as I'd like to be but yeah this is necessary! I'm also asking us to think about freedom and what working towards that would like.

On this episode, we talk all things menstrual hygiene. May is Menstrual Health month and May 28th is Menstrual Hygiene Day. Menstrual Hygiene Day is an annual awareness day to highlight the importance of good menstrual hygiene management and was initiated by the German-based NGO WASH United in 2014. May 28th has a symbolic meaning. May is the 5th month of the year and women menstruate an average of 5 days every month. Also, the menstrual cycle averages 28 days. So this is a conversation we can never have enough of because it affects so many of us around the world. I share my experience and also chat with 2 experts - Dr Karen Muthembwa, OB GYN, and Florence Kamaitha, founder of Pad Heaven Initiative.

This episode is part 2 of the In Conversation with Kenyan writers series and features Abigail Arunga and Anita Murage.

We are switching gears this week, and doing something different. This episode is a new format I'm introducing called, In Conversation. So as the name suggests, it will feature curated conversations with different people on different topics. This week's episode is In Conversation with Kenyan Writers. And this is part 1 of a 2 parter. This episode features Brian Ngartia, Aleya Kassam and Magunga Williams.

Today's episode is part 3, and the last in this series. We're still attempting to explore life, death and the care and grief in between and what it means to cling to joy, especially during a global pandemic.

Today's episode is part 2 of last week's episode. We're still attempting to explore life, death and the care and grief in between and what it means to cling to joy, especially during a global pandemic. The focus is on self care and mental health. You'll hear snippets of a great conversation I had with therapist Maggie Gitu, as well as voice notes from a few friends on how they're coping during this pandemic.

Hi, this is Mwende Says, a podcast by me Mwende Ngao on all things life. I know, I know, this has been a long time coming, but better late than never! It's April 2020 and we're living in unprecedented times. There's a pandemic that has killed thousands of people, decimated livelihoods and led to a global shutdown the likes of which we have never seen. Covid-19 is most likely far from contained, a vaccine is most likely more than a year away and we have a lot of enduring ahead of us as we continue to miss our friends and family due to social distancing, curfews and lockdowns, as we tighten our financial belts, some of us more than others, and as we face the possibility of getting sick, our loved ones getting sick, and well, the ever hanging cloud of death. I am in Nairobi, Kenya. So far we have a 7pm curfew, restaurants, bars, churches, schools are closed, big gatherings are outlawed and Nairobi is locked in. On this episode, I've asked a few family and friends to share their current realities and thoughts, so you'll hear that throughout the episode. I attempt to explore life, death and the care and grief in between and what it means to cling to joy.

An introduction to Mwende Says - why a podcast and why now.