Sandile Ngidi

Sandile Ngidi grew up at Amahlongwa on the KwaZulu-Natal south coast. He is a literary translator and writes in Zulu and English. He previously served on the first non-racial board of the Natal Performing Arts Company (now The Playhouse Company). In 2002 he wrote lyrics and contributed to the script of the official opening ceremony of the UN Summit on Sustainable Development held in Sandton.
In 2018, Mahlephula Press published his poetry chapbook, You Can’t Tell Me Anything Now. His poetry features in Halala Madiba – Nelson Mandela in Poetry, a collection published by Aflame Books. Together with Prof Innocentia Mhlambi, Sandile is the editor of Mintirho
Yavulavula: Arts, national identities, and democracy in South Africa, published by Mistra (via Jacana Media) in February 2021. On 25 September 2022, together with the Playhouse Company, Sandile produced the first Izingqalabutho Maskandi Concert. The event was a tribute to a forgotten maskandi pioneer, David Mlahleni Ngcobo and his peer, Thwalofu Khoza. It featured artists such as Bheki Khoza, Madala Kunene, MfokaMgquzula and Nkuzemdaka. He is a renowned art critic and public intellectual. His Twitter handle is @mahlephula