This South African actress is not afraid to show off her vitiligo

Leleti Khumalo is an icon that is not only a thespian powerhouse but also a celebration of individuality and inclusiveness. She is someone who has not only boldly embraced her Vitiligo but also advocates and encourages the fellow vitiligo community to follow the suit. An actress by profession, Leleti is not afraid to be herself in an industry that favors appearance over everything else. She is a true body positive movement warrior who inspires millions of women with vitiligo across the world to feel confidence in their skin.

“Majority of the people don’t wish to hurt us. They react differently because they don’t know about vitiligo. So, instead of getting angry to them or feel sad, we need to engage with them and educate them about the innocence of vitiligo. I am doing my bit by going public with vitiligo onscreen and in my personal life.”

Being a visible skin condition, Vitiligo has become a basis of discrimination and embarrassment for many. But strong people like Leleti are teaching us what it means to be truly beautiful. Leleti who doesn’t hesitate anymore in showing off her beautiful spots believes that the true beauty comes from inside and self-love surpasses everything else out there.

Vitiligo is an autoimmune skin condition that is caused due to the loss of skin pigment. As the irregular and confused immune systems attack the pigment producing skin cells, it results in skin depigmentation to cause white patches on the body.

Set aside the numerous myths and misconceptions in the society, vitiligo is neither contagious nor fatal. It doesn’t spread through any kind of contact; it does not cause any pain or pose any threat to the life.

For Leleti, she first noticed her spots when she was 18 years of age.

As she was growing up in a small township of KwaMashu in KwaZulu-Natal, Leleti didn’t have much access to reliable sources to learn and understand about Vitiligo. So she sidetracked the thoughts regarding it and continued to focus on her career. But as the spots continued to grow, she became more worried about her appearance.

“In my profession, your appearance matters a lot, it’s almost everything. So, I was obviously desperate for a cure.”

Leleti tried numerous treatments, including herbs, pharma medications and even laser treatment, but nothing helped substantially. She used to spend hours in front of her mirror in the dressing room trying to “fix” herself using concealers and foundations.

A household name in Kenya, Leleti rose to fame owing to her role in the movie Sarafina. Her other notable movies are Hotel Rwanda and Yesterday.

Just like many other successful actresses, she focused on her career in her 20s and 30s and finally decided to start a family and have kids in 2012 in her early 40s.

Before going for pregnancy, she was warned by the doctor that the pregnancy might cause her Vitiligo to spread which would be a serious threat to her acting career.

As she was desperate to start a family, Leleti didn’t pay any heed to it and continued with childbirth. She was blessed with triplets. But due to an unfortunate miscarriage, she lost one of them, which made her rethink her life priorities.

Along with her worsening skin condition due to pregnancy, Leleti felt herself to be trapped in a vicious cycle of darkness and despair. This double tragedy- losing her baby and spreading of vitiligo- took a serious toll on her life.

During those tough times her husband’s unwavering love and support was the only thing that made her keep going.

“I remember sitting him down and I said to him, okay I’m changing. Does that affect the way you look at me? And he said to me, I am assuring you, you are the same person as I saw you on the first day. You look beautiful no matter what and I still love you the same. So don’t worry about me, I will love you until the end.”

The idea of living successfully with Vitiligo

With the constant support of her husband and with the love of her new young family, Leleti decided that it was time to not hide behind makeup anymore. So, when she returned to the screen, it was a ‘new’ Leleti Khumalo, fully showing off her Vitiligo and embracing her beautiful special skin. In her role as MaZulu in the TV show ‘Imbewu: The seed’, Leleti made the super-bold move to go without skin camouflaging; showing off her vitiligo lesions with proud.

“I used to cover my white patches with make-up but for the TV drama series ‘Imbewu: The Seed’, I decided not to cover it. It was the beginning of my journey as a vitiligo awareness advocate. I told the show producers that I would like to play a women with vitiligo. Not just this TV show, but I am trying to talk about vitiligo on every platform I come across. In fact, as I show up everywhere with vitiligo, so a couple of queries about vitiligo are expected and I am sure these talks are going to have some serious impact in the long run towards vitiligo awareness and acceptance.”

And she did make an impact with her performance as someone with Vitiligo. A lot of fans used social media to thank her for the contribution she is making towards vitiligo awareness in the society. For Leleti, embracing her skin and her life wholeheartedly is one of the best things that have happened to her and now she wish that she could have done it earlier.

Leleti Khumalo got a message to share

When asked about her message to the young woman out there who wish to make a career in the showbiz, she encourages them to nurture self-love and self-respect and also, she advices them not to fall for the glamour they see as outsider. Rather, they should opt for acting if they are really passionate about it. Also, she wishes to see a better film industry that is more inclusive of every kind of person.

By showing off her true skin to the world, Leleti explained that she didn’t want to hide anymore behind a mask. She wants to tell the world her story and to know that Vitiligo isn’t something to be afraid of. Rather it is something that should be accepted and embraced.

Whenever her twins ask questions about her skin, she always calmly explains that it is something special these white spots.

“My attitude has changed because my priorities have changed. Now, it’s not about ‘just me’ anymore, I got a lovely family which is more important to me than my appearance.”

She is a true symbol of courage and compassion, walking on the incredible journey of self-acceptance and inspiring many to do the same. We really appreciate and thank a warrior like her.