‘Art gave me everything; purpose, identity and family. And the best way to give back is to support others find their own voice,’ Kwezi Kaganda says. That voice continues to echo through stages, classrooms, and television screens across Uganda, a reminder that true artistry is not about the applause, but continuity. Kaganda’s first stage had no curtains, no lights, just a living room in Ntinda during the tense final days of Idi Amin’s regime.
‘In1978, I gathered my younger brothers and sisters, directed them in King Arthur, and we performed for our parents and neighbours,’ he recalls.
There was no applause that day, but something more powerful happened. A young boy discovered that stories had the power to bring people together.
From that moment on, theatre was no longer just entertainment; it became a language he wanted to speak fluently. At Kyambogo, he immersed himself in drama under the late Elvania Namukwaya Zirimu, one of the greats of Uganda’s performing scene.
His aunt, the late Prof Rose Mbowa, one of the iconic theatre educators of her time, nudged him towards formal training in Music, Dance and Drama (MDD) at Makerere University. His father, a writer and journalist, steered him towards the creative path. At an all-boys’ school, his soft voice often landed him in female roles. Today, he laughs at that memory, but says it trained him in flexibility. In 1988, fresh from university, he auditioned for The Ebonies, which had launched a drama wing. ‘We went with my friends; Kimera and Namiiro.
I was lucky enough to be picked,’ he recalls. His breakthrough role came by accident, or destiny. He was cast as an understudy for a character called Inspector Otim. When the lead actor got caught up in other commitments, Kwezi stepped in. The original actor never returned. Inspector Otim became a household name. Audiences laughed, loved, and remembered him. ‘People still call me Inspector Otim to this day.’ But his favourite role was one most audiences might not recall loudly — Alex Mutagejja, a Muganda English teacher trained in America, who returned home unable to speak Luganda properly.
Then came a major shift. After leaving The Ebonies, he joined Namasagali College as a teacher. Under the guidance of Fr Damien Grimes, then school headteacher, he started writing and directing school productions. ‘At Namasagali, I realised I had a gift beyond acting.’ Many of the performers gracing today’s stages and screens passed through his hands. Shy students acting nervous on their debut stage appearance were later supported to become confident actors, directors and producers. The stage was no longer his alone. It became a classroom of souls. ‘As you grow older, stage roles reduce,’ he says with the realism of someone who has fully walked the path.
‘But writing is different. Even at 80, you can still write,’ Kaganda adds. To harness his craft, he joined Maisha Film Lab, founded by Mira Nair, where he learnt the art of screenwriting. He explains: ‘Film doesn’t allow you to tell. You must show. On stage, you speak. In film, you suggest.’ His work and experience led him to contribute to productions such as That’s Life Mwattu, Hand in Hand, and later The Hostel, a youth drama that captured the pulse of a modern Ugandan generation. Today, he continues to write and edit for Sanyu, the popular Pearl Magic drama series. He remains a silent architect behind some of the television moments that Ugandans binge, love and laugh at, and quote.
Mention Fun Factory and his eyes soften. ‘I was there from the beginning,’ he says. ‘Back when it was still Theatre Factory.’ Their first show at TLC is etched in his memory. The audience was small, he recounts, with mostly friends. He was paid a plate of chips. At that time, it was acting and laughter shared in dimly lit corridors of the National Theatre. ‘What has kept Fun Factory together is that people are not there for money. They are there because it feels like home. We are a family. Even our families know each other,’ he adds. Kwezi was born during the 1966 Kabaka Crisis. Movement was restricted and his mother went into labour at night. His father helped her to deliver at home.
Perhaps that is where his life-long relationship with improvisation began, born into tension, raised into creativity. His father wrote. His mother healed. He grew up between stories and compassion, two things that still shape his work. He speaks of acting with a generosity, rare in an industry that often celebrates individual stars. His favourite actor was Kute, his colleague from the Inspector Otim era. He says: ‘People thought I was funny. But it was Kute who made me funny. He listened and reacted. Acting is a give-and-take craft.’ He speaks with deep admiration of Mariam Ndagire, someone he hoped to share a stage with one day, as well as Irene Kulabako and his all-time favourite, Irene Namiiro.
Today, Kwezi Kaganda is still working; writing, editing scripts and walking into theatre rehearsal rooms like a man coming home. But if there is one role he holds above all titles, it is mentor. He challenges local writers to write authentic Ugandan stories and avoid westernising all the content. ‘Most of the work on the market depicts the western culture yet we have a very rich culture.’ For budding writers, Kaganda says screenplay writing has many opportunities provided they deliver good quality stories.
He emphasises that it’s not a enough to have a good story. It should be told very well. Interest, watching other people’s works, reading, basic techniques of writing and practising, are some of the skills he enlists required to thrive in this industry. Matthew Nabwiso is one the talents he is proud of mentoring. ‘I taught him at Namasagali College and I have worked with him on several projects.