Many may not be familiar with the name Phillip Gadzikwa Mushangwe, but this character rocked local television in the 1990s as a comedy character. Under the name, Paraffin or Baba vaSorobi gained fame with his jaw-breaking humour. Indeed he had the talent as an actor, he personalized language for any given situation and mood which left viewers in stitches.
In the series ‘Paraffin’, he acted as a gossiper about what was going on in the neighbourhood. Paraffin had huge appetite and ‘amazing’ eating habits whenever he visited his neighbours. The combination of Paraffin with Rhoda Mtembi (mai sorobhi) was perfect and seemed real which kept people glued to their televisions.
So talented he was, Phillip died on the 29th of June 1997. Nevertheless, he remains one of the most celebrated icons of Zimbabwe’s film industry whose brilliance is hard to beat. In addition, Paraffin featured in local media as part of the
• Top 10 Zimbabwean actors of all time by Youthvillage
• Zimbabwe’s best actors by Newsday.
Paraffin’s Famous Catch Phrases
“Ndamboti ndakaenda ku University here ini? Inongori scop medula blangata yangu inongori sharp!”
“Makutoita clinic ino kaempire kenyu kehukamalism . .”
“Kutosvikawo panevamwe varume hanzi ndiri gentleman neiwo mazitye ezvikomba..”
