Meet this week’s hottie: NayMaps Maphalala is adorable, driven and a wonderful actor on Uzalo. We love his look, but most of all, we love his acting. He tells us about his character and more. 
You play Mxolis Xulu on Uzalo. We’ve watched your character transform and grow. What more can we expect from your role?
Things are about to get interesting, especially now that Mxolisi’s father has passed on. Mxolisi is about to take on a leadership role, which will bring about a lot of changes.
Speaking about leadership, what makes a good leader?
A great leader is someone who can serve others fairly. When you are a leader, you need to lead by example so people can look to you for advice and trust your leadership skill. You need to be a good listener and be patient.
As an actor about to portray a man in a leadership position, would you say you have leadership qualities?
Although Mxolisi and I are different, we can relate on the leadership role. I would like to think of myself as someone who has leadership qualities. I believe in working with people as oppose to giving orders. The best way to lead is to involve people. 
You and Mxolisi are very different, how do you make sure you play him well?
I have always wanted to live in a made-up the world. To portray my roles well, I do research and source my emotions. For example, when Mxolisi’s father died, I had to find an experience I had gone through, which was when my grandmother died. This helped me feel and portray Mxolisi’s emotions well.
What’s been the hardest role or scene you have ever played?
The most memorable one would be when Mxolisi was buried alive. This was a challenging scene and I had to act tough for it. Playing Mxolisi has been my toughest role yet.
If you weren’t acting, what would you be doing?
I’m a singer, so I would be focused on that. I’m also a TV presenter, so I would be in the entertainment industry, anyways. However, if I were to do any job that was not entertainment-related, I would be a pirate. As a pirate, I would travel the world on a ship – I love travelling. 
What’s the best destination to travel to?
Sadly, I have not travelled enough; I don’t have a broad knowledge of the best places to go to. Durban, however, is my favourite travel destination by far. It has the best weather and I enjoy how Durbanites treat its visitors.
As a single guy, what would you say is your ideal woman?
She has to be someone who is a great listener. She must be caring, and open minded and open to travelling. That way, she and I can have interesting conversations and go everywhere together.
What would your ideal date night consist of?
I am not a picky guy; we could be walking and having ice cream at the beach. As long as we are together and have an interesting conversation, I think that would be a lovely date.
