By Everson Luhanga
- Nkosinathi Given Masemula wrote and directed Ikusasa Liyasha, a Tembisa drama about youth drug abuse premiering on YouTube in June 2026.
- The full cast comes from Tembisa, and Masemula says the film is meant to start honest talks between parents, schools and community leaders.
Nkosinathi Given Masemula did not make this film as an outsider looking in. He lost a friend to drugs. A family member was an addict. When he sat down to write Ikusasa Liyasha, he already knew what it costs.
The film follows young people in Tembisa navigating addiction, peer pressure and the decisions that change everything. The title means “tomorrow is burning.” The slogan reads: “One choice. One high. One path you can’t escape.”
Masemula, known as Nathko, cast every role from within Tembisa. He said that was a deliberate choice. The people on screen know this world. Some of them have lived it.
“This film is more than entertainment,” he said.
“It’s a warning, a reflection, and a message to young people that every choice has consequences. We want viewers to think deeply about the direction their lives are taking.”
The film shows how addiction moves through a young person’s life, pulling at school, family and any sense of a future. Masemula said he wants it to open conversations that communities are not having loudly enough, between parents, teachers, students and leaders.
Ikusasa Liyasha premieres on YouTube in June 2026.
Pictured above: Writer and filmmaker Nkosinathi Given Masemula, whose new film Ikusasa Liyasha draws on personal loss to tell a story about drug abuse among young people in Tembisa.
Image source: Supplied
