Kalasha Awards 2021: Crime and Justice up for Best TV Drama and more

The Kenya Film Commission has unveiled the nominees for Kalasha Awards 2021. In its best performance yet, content on Showmax have 22 nominations, including all five Best TV Drama nominees.

Kenya’s first Showmax Original Crime and Justice has three nods, across all the TV Drama categories: Best TV Drama, Best Lead Actor (Alfred Munyua) and Best Lead Actress (Sarah Hassan).

Showmax’s first co-production with global broadcaster CANAL+, Crime and Justice is a police procedural and legal drama that follows detective duo Makena (Hassan) and Silas (Munyua) as they investigate one-ripped-from-the-headlines case per episode.

Joining Crime and Justice’s Munyua in the Best Lead Actor category is George Mo, nominated for his role in Borderline on Showmax. The crime-drama, set in Nairobi’s Eastlands, follows two gangsters who fight for territory while engaging in a deadly war with the police.

Showmax also earned two nominations in the Best Documentary category, where Eugene Mbugua’s docu-reality series Sol Family and This Love go head-to-head.

One of the most-watched local shows on Showmax in Kenya, Sol Family gives viewers an intimate look into the personal lives of multi-award-winning band, Sauti Sol, while This Love explores the lives of award-winning musicians and celebrity couple Nameless and Wahu.

Kalasha-nominated Kenyan series to stream

Adding to this impressive nomination list of TV shows on Showmax are Maisha Magic East and Maisha Magic Plus titles, with the drama series Kina in the running for Best Lead Actress (Sanaipei Tande) and Best TV Drama for the first time, joining Kalasha favourites like Selina – now a four-time nominee and a two-time winner in this category.

Facing off with Kina and Selina in the Best TV Drama category is the coastal Swahili telenovela Pete which also boasts two more nominations – Best Lead Actress for Aisha Mwajumlah and Best Performance in a TV Comedy for Ali Shahibu.

Njoro wa Uba, the much-loved Maisha Magic East comedy-drama and one of the most popular local titles on Showmax, is up for Best Lead Actor (Joe Kinyua) and Best Lead Actress (Jane Wambui), and a second nod for Best TV Drama.

Back to defend its title for Best TV Comedy is 2020 winner Varshita, which also battles 2019 winner Nyanya Rukia and Pete for Best Performance in a TV Comedy.

NTV’s drama series Pieces of Us, another title on Showmax, scored two nominations with Best Lead Actor and Best Lead Actress for Lucarelli Onyango and Riziki Ambrose respectively.

To wrap up the list of nominees on Showmax are Egna (Ethiopia) and Engaito (Uganda), in the Best International Award (East Africa) category. These two films are part of MultiChoice Talent Factory short films from the “Colours of Africa” film series that was launched in May to celebrate Africa Day.

Speaking about the nomination, Timothy Okwaro, MultiChoice Channel Director, East and Southern Africa said, “We are humbled, honoured and excited about these nominations. This goes to show that we are doing the right things and as the Kenyan film industry continues to grow, we are proud of the fact that we  play a major role in this growth by continuing to invest in local stories that our viewers love to watch.”

He continued. “MultiChoice prides itself as being Africa’s best storyteller and to receive this recognition in Kenya’s top film & TV awards is testament to our being the most loved Kenyan storyteller. We would also like to celebrate the producers of these shows and thank them for all their hard work. They are a big part of the reason we have received all these nominations.”

Voting is now open and will close on 3 December 2021. Vote for your faves here.

Get the full list of all Kalasha Awards 2021 nominees here.