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Joel Tsvakwi
Taremeredzwa Kwangwari is a happy man as his prison series, Crime and Strings, that he had been working on since 2016 finally made it onto the national broadcaster, ZBCtv last month.

The drama that was produced as part of the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Service (ZPCS) Bulawayo Metropolitan province’s rehabilitation programme, started showing on June 16 and has been airing every Wednesday since.

Kwangwari is over the moon as he faced a lot of difficulties working on this production. The coming of the Covid-19 pandemic and its lockdowns further posed a challenge in terms of filming, derailing the process. He also had challenges with the cast as some of the inmates who were part of the production benefited from the Presidential Amnesty and could no longer proceed with the shooting.

However, where there is a will, there is a way. The production was completed and is now being enjoyed by locals on ZBCtv.

Writer of the drama series, Kwangwari who is a correctional officer said the main objective of Crime and Strings is to bring the concept of rehabilitation and reintegration to the people and bring prisons closer to the masses by shortening the once-long walls of prison. He said successful reintegration of prisoners needs community engagement hence the need to inform the public about how the correctional institute operates.

Just like any artiste, having a project being aired on the national broadcaster is a milestone. Reflecting on the making of the drama, Kwangwari said equipped with a script, he approached Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services and they later engaged ZBC.

“Truly speaking, it wasn’t easy for ZPCS and ZBCtv to collaborate on my production and that alone proved to me that my script was good.

Prisons provided props and cast while the national broadcaster provided the crew.

“I’d like to thank the ZPCS Commissioner General for according me a chance to use their resources, officers and inmates in portraying my story of rehabilitation and reintegrating inmates back to society as law-abiding citizens,” he said.

“Also, I’d like to thank ZBC Montrose crew for turning my story into a reality. Special mention goes to Bulawayo Metropolitan Province led by Assistant Commissioner Lampard Jana, Crime and Strings could not have been there without their support.”

Having featured on the first episode, Kwangwari said: “I chose to remain behind the scenes simply because I believe in collaborative efforts and giving other players a chance.”

He said following this breakthrough, he has been encouraged to work on more productions.

“Working on Crime and Strings has been a journey to put my art in the national spotlight since 2016. My fans should expect more as I have pending projects in my pot that are awaiting release.

“These include a video that features model Ben Chest of a song produced by Crime and Strings,” Kwangwari.

Popularly known as Tare True Defender, Kwangwari, other than being a scriptwriter is a dancehall musician and author who has a book titled Pundutso. — @joelTsvakwi.