Manaka Ranaka: Biography, Age, Daughter, Father, Mother, Siblings, Children

Manaka Ranaka (born 6 April 1979) is an award-winning South African actress and television personality. She is best known for playing Lucy Diale in the SABC1 soap opera Generations: The Legacy.

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Ranaka landed her breakout role as Nandipha Sithole in the SABC 3 soap opera Isidingo in 2000. She has appeared in other television shows, such as Stokvel, Dineo’s Diary, Gaz’lam, and Home Affairs, among others.

Manaka Ranaka
Award-winning South African actress and television personality \| Manaka Ranaka.
Personal Details
Name:	Manaka Ranaka
Born:	6 April 1979 (46 years old)
Place of birth:	Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa
Nationality:	South African
Parents:	Kgotlaesele Ranaka (father) Nonceba Ranaka (mother)
Education:	Dinwiddie High School
Occupation:	Actress, TV personality
Years active:	199-date
Siblings:	Dineo Ranaka (sister) Mpumi Ranaka (sister) Ranaka Ranaka (brother) Mzingisi “Ziggy” Ranaka (brother)
Partner:	Sipho Lekaba (sep.) Ntuthuko Mdletshe
Children:	Katlego Naledi Sibongiseni

Early Life

Manaka Ranaka was born on 6 April 1979 in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa. Her parents, Kgotlaesele and Nonceba Ranaka, provided them with everything they needed while growing up.

Her mother was a strict disciplinarian. Ranaka was closer to her father when she was younger. She has four siblings, Mpumi, Dineo, Mzingisi, and Ranaka. She attended Dinwiddie High School.

Career

After her first audition, Manaka landed the role of Nandipha Sithole, a former prostitute, on Isidingo in 2000. She was ‘promptly’ fired after telling the producers she was pregnant.

Ranaka landed the role of company owner Vinolia Ntuli in the SABC1 drama series Tshisa in 2006. She landed the role of Portia in the SABC1 drama series Gaz’lam and as Lerato Khumalo in the SABC2 sitcom Stokvel.

Manaka has also appeared in corporate and commercial theatres. She has performed in productions such as Drumstruck, On My Birthday, and Torong. She played Portia, a lady living with HIV, on the youth drama Gaz’lam.

After Gaz’lam, Ranaka played Lerato Khumalo on the comedy Stokvel. In 2005, she appeared in an episode of the documentary series SexTV. She portrayed the recurring role of Nozuko in the SABC3 dramedy One Way in 2006.

Manaka features in the docu-reality series The Ranakas, created as a spin-off from Dineo’s Diary. She also played Vinolia Ntuli in the drama series Tshisa and Ayanda in the SABC1 mini-series Society in 2007.

In 2007, Manaka won the Golden Horn for Best Actress in a TV Comedy at the South African Film and Television awards (SAFTAs), for her role in Stokvel. She starred as Buhle “Beauty” Cele in the Mzansi Magic soap opera Zabalaza.

Manaka played Lucy in the SABC 1 soapie Generations: The Legacy and Zim Zim in the Mzansi Magic drama Lockdown.

Personal Life

Manaka Ranaka has three children from different fathers. She had her first daughter, Katlego, with Sipho Lekaba. She presented him with a special gift, a portrait of their daughter, during her daughter’s memorial service at San Salvador Catholic Church in Leondale, Ekurhuleni.

She had two children, Naledi and Sibongiseni, with Ntuthuko Mdletshe. They broke up years ago and are back together. She has a grandchild, Mpho, who is the child of her late daughter.

Manaka was involved in a tragic car accident in 2015. She struck and killed a schoolgirl, Millicent Mbonani, near the N3 highway to Durban.