Veteran actress Mary Khavere, popularly known by her stage name Mama Kayai, has been feted in the US after receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award in Performing Arts in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Mama Kayai has been a darling to many Kenyans who watched the popular Vitimbi show, which aired on KBC. She has graced Kenyan screens for over 40 years.
Although she began acting in 1980, she rose to fame in 1985 when the Vitimbi show started airing. Acting alongside the late Mzee Ojwang as his wife, Mama Kayai cracked Kenyan's ribs with her excellent acting skills.
On the show, she and the late Mzee Ojwang comically brought to life the challenges married couples go through. The two actors soon became known as the power couple of Kenyan comedy.
They quickly made Vitimbi a fan favourite. For her exemplary performance in the show, Mama Kayai, alongside other actors, won numerous awards.
They not only won Kenyans' hearts but were also the favourite entertainers of all three former Kenyan presidents.
Apart from Vitimbi, Mama Kayai also graced other shows, including the courtroom drama show dubbed Vioja Mahakamani and Jungu Kuu.
Her consistent relevance, humility, and resilience in the creative industry have earned her both national and international admiration. The Lifetime Achievement Award is the icing on the cake, adding to the numerous accolades she has received. It honours her enduring impact on East African television and comedy.
Mama Kayai, alongside other Kenyan talents, travelled to the US on Friday to receive the awards dubbed the Myogenic Excellence Awards, which took place at the United Brethren Restoration Centre. The awards ceremony was held on Saturday, July 19.
The ceremony runs alongside the Myogenic Africa Mentorship Program, which targets upcoming creatives and professionals in the diaspora and across Africa.
Organisers described her as a true mirror of how to manage fame with dignity.
“As the CEO of Myogenic Africa Talent Academy, I’m thrilled to announce that our first team, led by Mama Kayai, is arriving at Raleigh-Durham Airport (RDU) right now! My team and I are on the ground to welcome them,” Solomon Omboto shared.
Other notable individuals expected to receive awards include Hon. Huldah Momanyi, a Kenyan legislator serving in the State of Minnesota; actor Abel Amunga; former Kenya Film Classification Board CEO Ezekiel Mutua; and comedian and media personality Walter Mong’are, also known as Nyambane.
