How to Ruin Love unfolds as a romantic comedy spanning four episodes, centred on the lives of Kagiso and Zoleka. Kagiso, a tech enthusiast on the brink of a breakthrough, supports Zoleka, an actress, as she navigates her career. Their love story is complicated by Zoleka’s impulsive nature, which leads her to misinterpret clues and jump to conclusions and Kagiso’s family issues.
How to Ruin love foregrounds the importance of family; in support and progress of individual lives. It buttresses the stress, frustration, happiness love, and a range of emotions that can be experienced when family interferes in personal life.
As the story unfolds, How to Ruin Love explores themes of love, flawed characters, familial bonds, and the endurance required in relationships. It blends humour with poignant moments, revealing the complexities of human emotions and the challenges of communication in relationships.
Storyline
Kagiso and Zoleka met on a Valentine’s Day but this year’s Valentine’s Day, Zoleka wants it to be special. Their love is tested when Zoleka expects a proposal but instead stumbles upon what she perceives as evidence of Kagiso’s unfaithfulness.
How to Ruin Love delves deeper into the lives of Kagiso and Zoleka after the fallout from their misunderstanding goes viral on social media with many consequences. This public scandal prompts her father to vehemently oppose their relationship, while Kagisu’s family also withdraws their support due to the breach of trust.
Despite the public backlash and familial disapproval, Zoleka is determined to mend her relationship with Kagiso and his families. She makes multiple attempts to reconcile, including two unsuccessful marriage proposals, each thwarted by lingering mistrust and unresolved assumptions.
How to Ruin Love navigates through Zuleika’s journey as she wrestles with her impulsive nature and strives to regain Kagiso’s trust and love. It portrays the complexities of forgiveness, the consequences of rash decisions, and the enduring power of love amidst societal pressures and personal flaws.
Characterization/Cast
Created by Katleho Ramaphakela and Rethabile Ramaphakela, How to Ruin Love stars John Morapama, Marjorie Langa, Thando Thabethe, Noxolo Dlamini, Dumisani Mbebe, S’Dumo Mtshali, Nefisa Mkhabela to mention but few. The lead characters, Zoleka and Kagiso exude the expected love chemistry and mixed emotions as they go through thorns and thistles in their relationship.
The delivery of each character in this cast opens up serious issues in a comic way. The audience is led to feel every ounce of emotion of the major characters amidst laughter and humour. The cast selection was definitely a great choice of actors and actresses.
Setting/ Costumes
Set in Southern Africa, How to Ruin Love reveals the undelaying class structure of the society. The Dzanas and Phatudis are of separate worlds of grim and glitz respectively. This class structure of the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’ or in this case, ‘have-not-enoughs’ set the love story on its own journey of fights and forgiveness.
Dialogue/Language
The conversations are mostly in Sotho and English Language. The use of indigenous language emotes the issues projected in How to Ruin Love in an acceptable and relatable way to the African audience.
How to Ruin Love masterfully captures the delicate balance between personal ambition and romantic relationships against the backdrop of familial dynamics. Through the journeys of Kagiso and Zoleka, the series explores the multifaceted emotions that arise when family becomes a significant influence in one’s personal life. It highlights the importance of support and understanding within family structures while illustrating how love, despite its challenges and misunderstandings, can ultimately triumph. This romantic comedy not only entertains but also offers a poignant reflection on the complexities of love and family.