Jacky Vike, popularly known as Awinja, is a talented actress and an established online comedian. The role she played as a househelp in the hugely popular Papa Shirandula TV sitcom propelled her to stardom. She gelled so well with her boss, Wilbroda, making the show a must watch. She can be described as funny, gorgeous and a natural on the screens.
Apart from sitcom, she has featured in some plays and also had a role in the award winning movie Nairobi Half Life where she acted as a pr0st!tute.
Age
Jacky was born on 8th September 1987.
Education
The beautiful actress went to Heshima Road Primary school before proceeding to Kegoye High School in Western, Kenya.
Career
The love for the arts started manifesting when she was in class four where she performed choral verses and music. In high school, she took part in the drama festivals and the legendary storyteller Kennedy Otukho noticed her and told her to pursue acting.
After high school, she joined a group that acted in high school set books known as Theatre-Ensemble. A year later, she joined Heartstrings and acted in various plays. She also acted in Wash and Set, which aired on NTV, as a school girl.
In 2009, she went to audition for a documentary. That was where she met the late Charles Bukeko (Papa Shirandula) who was part of the panel. Bukeko was impressed with her talent and wanted her to try out for the Awinja role. She was not sure about it as the role involved her playing a very primitive girl from the village with a thick Luhya accent, a character she was not familiar with.
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However, she practiced the accent and before she knew it, she was a part of the Papa Shirandula cast. This role is what made her a household name in Kenya. The show used to air every Thursday at 7:40pm on Citizen TV. Through the role, she built a massive following and has been able to work with notable brands in the country.
Family
The actress made a decision to keep her family out of the limelight as she believes social media can at times be filled with hate and ‘fakeness’. She is a mother to one son whom she keeps out of social media platforms. According to her, motherhood is a very amazing journey, one that she would never regret. In the past, she has also said that her mother is very instrumental in her son’s upbringing.
“You learn as you grow. My mum guides me a lot, “ she said while talking about motherhood.
The former papa Shirandula actor grew up in Eastleigh, Nairobi and is the third born in a family of five children, two boys and three girls. She lost her father at a young age and one of her brothers in 2010.
Bullying
The idea of beauty always differs from one person to the other as people have different notions of beauty. The celebrated actor was at times bullied owing to her jaw line. While in Hollywood, a sharp jawline always characterizes beauty it seems in Kenya it is completely different. At one point, she was insecure about her jaw line and would even wear weaves or hairstyles that would cover it somehow. Some likened it to that of Kanye West and she was called ugly.
“You would never have seen a close up picture of myself because I was always told ‘Uko na jaws mbaya! Jaws za wababa, jaws zinakaa mbao imechongwa, jaws za Kanye West, jaws za mtu hajakula miezi kadhaa, jaws ugly!!!Etc etc…,” she once wrote.
However, she realized it was not going anywhere and chose to embrace it. Today, it is no longer an issue and she rocks short hairstyles without feeling as insecure as before.
Baby Daddy
In an interview appearing on the Standard, the funny girl revealed that her pregnancy was linked to eight men who included a security guard and an MCA she has never met.
