Dear Sis Dolly are the words many South Africans can relate to, especially if you grew up reading the pages of Drum magazine. Now the story of the iconic agony aunt is being brought to the big screen.
Known Associates Entertainment is bringing “Dear Sis Dolly”, a heartwarming South African family comedy-drama, to cinemas nationwide.
“Dear Sis Dolly” is directed by filmmaker Twiggy Matiwana and written by Makganwana Mokgalong.
The story is brought to life by an ensemble cast of South African screen royalty led by award-winning actress Didintle Khunou, S’thandiwe Kgoroge, who plays Drum Magazine’s Editor in Chief, bestie Dineo Langa, chief rival Natasha Thahane, nerdish IT guy Brighton Ngoma and the legendary Jerry Mofokeng-Makhetha and Abigail Kubeka, amongst others.
Khunou stars as Khethiwe, a quirky, idealistic, and overachieving psychologist in her late 20s, who enters the competition to become Drum Magazine’s new agony aunt, Sis Dolly.
Speaking to IOL, Khunou shed light on the character that many people across the country once envisioned themselves as.
“I think the character and the brand of the character is so iconic and legendary that I didn’t want to focus on that; I wanted to focus on the impact that Sis Dolly has in the community.
“I wanted to focus on bringing the humanity and the soul of this character forth. I wanted to make people quite aware of the fact that this is just a girl who wants to uplift and empower her community, and she is very ambitious, full of potential.
“But in her pursuit of doing that, she comes across challenges that made her realise that she has sacrificed too much of herself to give back.”
Khunou shared that the lesson with Khethiwe is the importance of filling up your own cup, learning how to lead, take the reins and lead your own life.
“If you want to be able to lead a community and lead others into a space of healing, you have to do that for yourself. It starts at home.
Khethiwe enters the Sis Dolly competition to save her community mental health centre, Legae, from closure.
Mental health has become a big hot topic across the country, and TV programmes have become a big way of bringing awareness to the topic that can be deemed sensitive.
Khunou explained that people are focused on trying to survive life as opposed to wanting to open up about their feelings, which now brings the challenge of how to inspire people to look at mental health differently.
“As much as we think mental health is a hot topic, I still think people in our black communities disregard it and dismiss it,” said the actress.
“I think the film contributes towards inspiring people to look into maybe jobs or vocations or passions or things that don’t just impact themselves.
“I just hope that the movie contributes towards a great sense of building not just awareness about mental health, but a support system and an ecosystem where people become sources of refuge for one another.”
The movie debuting on the big screen is a way to bring people together and back to the cinema. With the convenience of streaming and the cost of living, cinema seats are not as full as they once were, unless it’s a major blockbuster.
Khunou expressed that soon, people are going to realise how important it is to have experiences, and that will drive them back into the cinema.
“The same reason why it’s important to go to a concert, a music concert, is the same reason that you would go to the cinema. To experience a body of work that was created to show you an aspect of the South African experience that you might not have access to or that you might not have known before.
“I think it’s all good and well to support stuff that’s on TV, South African stories that are on TV. But the cinema is becoming a dying art and a dying medium, and I think we shouldn’t let that happen.”
Khunou argues that the conversation around the cost of watching a movie at the cinema is often seen as an excuse, considering how many people spend money on alcohol every weekend. And maybe a culture of South Africans going to the cinema, going to the theatre, going to concerts, should be created.
“I think if we also bring the cinema to the people through events. There are so many innovative ways to bring our artwork as creators to the people.”
“Dear Sis Dolly” is a love letter to community, self-love and the enduring cultural legacy of Drum Magazine’s iconic agony aunt column.
The film is produced by Tshepiso Chikapa Phiri, Moroba Nkawe and Joel Chikapa Phiri of Known Associates Entertainment, with advertising legend Peter Vundla lending his vision and experience as Executive Producer.
“Dear Sis Dolly” took five years to get to the big screen. Production began in 2021 and was shot in 2024. They encountered all sorts of challenges, from technical to finding the right writer and also financial, which is a big challenge in film.
The film opens at Ster Kinekor and Nu Metro cinemas across South Africa on Friday, July 3, 2026.
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