He ranks among the best actors in the country. Melvin Alusa shares the same bloodline with Sauti Sol’s Bien Aime Baraza. WoK looks at his career journey, raising eight children and being rejected by his father.
Melvin Alusa Background and Education
The 43-year-old was born in Kakamega and spent the first six years of his life in the village. In a past interview with Spice FM, he recalled his journey growing up and the challenges he encountered.
He spent those formative years with his grandmother before his father, who was living in Nairobi went to fetch him. They lived in a family of three, him being the stepchild. One of his siblings is in the US while his brother is famous Sauti Sol musician Bien Aime. He has another known as Yuri Baraza.
He attended several primary schools before joining Kakamega High School where he went on to become the rugby team captain. While he excelled in sports, academics were not his forte.
Strained relationship with father
The actor revealed that he had a strained relationship with his father and always felt unwanted. At times, he would even be told to stay in the village rather than join them in Nairobi for the school holidays but he went anyway.
He said he began to do things around the house so he would be noticed to no avail. This escalated to a point where his father told him he hated him.
Unfortunately, he was expelled from Kakamega High, which led to him getting kicked out of the house. He then went to live with his biological mother in Umoja.
Eventually, the father left for the UK and he went on to have several jobs before becoming an actor. He also talked to his father when he returned to the country, Melvin sought amends and apologized for any wrongdoing on his part.
Sharing his painful past on social media, he wrote;
“A father’s love is the foundation of his children. It is what they build on and are able to face the storms the world throws at them. What happens when a father chooses to be absent or is present but has no love towards the child”, one of his posts read.
He added,
“I grew up facing great rejection and resentment from my father.
I was fearful, felt unworthy and for the better part of my childhood longed for affirmation, but it only got worse to the point of being kicked out of the home I knew at the gender of 17….”, his post read in part.
Speaking to Buzz Central Kenya, he said the two had reconciled and were working on their relationship.
Career
Acting may have not been something he dreamt of but when the chance came, he took it and excelled. His first job was selling furniture, then he became a tout before securing a job at Woolworths. Still, he felt restless and like he needed to be doing something more.
Melvin then quit his job hoping to become a flight attendant at Regional Air but it collapsed. He then met a former classmate who informed him of auditions. He went and as luck would have it, got the role. This was how his career in theatre and acting set books began.
He slowly rose to a big name in the industry and was featured in Makutano Junction. He also became widely famous after representing Kenya in Big Brother Africa. He said he went to the show, not to become famous but to win the prize money. Eventually, he was eliminated.
The actor also got other roles including international ones. He became a main character on Mission to Rescue, where he acted as a captain who was leading his troops to rescue Al-Shabab hostages. He has also appeared in: The Boy who Harnessed the Wind and Country Queen.
The talented professional was also a cast member on Salem. However, he later quit citing the toxic work environment.
His dream is to make it big on stages, like, Hollywood and feature as a main character on Netflix originals and HBO Originals. He seeks to be an actor who educates the masses by having roles that are inspiring.
Melvin Alusa Family
He is a father of eight children, five boys and three girls. Four of them are two sets of twins.
In a past interview with Spice FM, he said initially it was hard to navigate fatherhood due to his experiences. However, today he works on building a good relationship with his children and giving them emotional support.
“I am a single parent. There are moments I feel overwhelmed, frustrated and want to throw in the towel. It was not a situation I imagined I would be in but the love and joy they give me supersedes everything else. I learned how to manage finances with sides hustles”, he was quoted by a local daily.
