Kenyan Actor turned digital creator Abel Mutua is under fire after he revealed that he intentionally wrote a kissing scene on Tahidi High as payback to Sarah Hassan who had rejected his romantic advances.
The creator famously known as ‘Mkurugenzi’ was on the Mic Cheque Podcast, where he narrated how he had a crush on her and had been trying to get her attention to no avail. When the opportunity arose, he manipulated the script to share a kiss with the actress.
““Tanya alikua mpolite..lakini Mungu ni nani,our very final episode nikasema walahi huyu dem huyu vile amekua akininyima.
The very second last scene of my episode in the show nilimpiga mate mbaya kwa class.” Mutua excitedly narrated.
The duo were part of the cast of the hit show that aired on Citizen TV, where they played high school students navigating the challenges faced by the average teenager in Kenya.
The admission by Mutua has rubbed netizens the wrong way, with many calling him out for using his position to take advantage of his fellow actor.
“Makosa imefanyika. Mkurugenzi Abel Mutua admitting to having forced a kiss scene (as a scriptwriter of Tahidi High) just to get to Sarah who had privately refused his advances is what gets you cancelled. It’s what has brought down the greatest Hollywood writers. We wait,” X user Abraham Mutai wrote.
“Abel Mutua should be told demanding a kiss from someone who’s not interested can be treated as sexual harassment,” another X user stated.
“Mbona mtu kama Abel Mutua who has a teenage daughter akubali hata kupeana story kama hiyo so enthusiastically as if he is an excited teenage boy? There are things about your past you go to the grave with to protect people close to you,” Ohta Ryota said.
The Kenyan film industry has had its fair share of sexual abuse and exploitation cases, but they are rarely publicized. Threats are issued to most budding actors, causing them to remain silent about non-consensual advances by executives, producers and directors.
“Any person who can take advantage of the situation does and there are people who will undermine any attempts to right the wrongs,” said award-winning actress Nice Githinji in a past interview.
