UGANDA, Gayaza | Real Muloodi News | Isaac Muwawu, a veteran stage and screen actor known for his roles in major films such as Queen of Katwe, dramas such as Centre 4, and a slew of local theatre productions dating back to the late 1970s, owns an estate that encompasses his new modern home alongside his mother’s house, a colonial-era relic.
The previous structure had been his mother’s home, and he purposely purchased the site next to it to build a house near hers.
“When my father went to study at Oxford University, we were toddlers, so our mother who was a health worker at Mityana Hospital used her meagre income to put up this house. Unfortunately, she died in 1974 following a dog bite because at that time there was no treatment for rabies. The house was abandoned because at that time I had joined Senior One and was living with my father, who had since returned to Uganda and lived within Makerere University where he had started lecturing,” he recounts.
The Court Case and Estate Expansion
Previously, the actor erected a house on land his father had purchased in Kikoni, Makerere. However, it became problematic because it lacked a land title, resulting in a court dispute and an injunction on the land. His house was afterwards demolished.
As he came to terms with his loss, he set his sights on Seeta since landowners were selling their land at the time, and several individuals expressed interest in obtaining the family plot.
Instead of selling the old residence in Seeta Village on Gayaza Road in Busukuma, Muwawu purchased more land close to her mother’s house to enlarge her estate.
Isaac Muwawu currently owns one and a half acres on which he constructed the family house, Nabigira Estate, named after his mother.
“The truth is, I wanted to build a three-bedroom house to cater for girls, boys and then one for us, as parents. I built the house when I was fed up with renting because my income was not regular, yet I had a family to take care of and make sure they lived a comfortable life. I started building a home even if it was not my dream home. It was what I could afford at the time,” he narrates.
His Home Description
As a collector, Isaac Muwawu keeps many of his works as an actor on Video Home System analogue cassettes as part of his living room mementoes.
He claims it is part of his archive to demonstrate to his grandkids and art enthusiasts that he performed the arts with passion and participated in the glory years of stage theatre before transitioning to film acting.
He has a minibar stocked with well-known whiskies, brandies, gin, and beer in his home.
There are seats in the compound where he frequently sits with friends to relax over a beer and reflect.
A typical outdoor kitchen outside the old house emits a diverse scent of local delicacies.
The Landscape
The seasoned actor levelled the ground and planted grass, trees, flowers, and other vegetation.
“Developing the land is still a work in progress because it is a big chunk. Every time I get an idea, I share ideas on how to implement it with my wife and family,” he says.
“We sit under one of the trees for the chat as we enjoy some juice and later the sweet jackfruit, which, as I learn from my host, is in plenty and available all year round,” he adds.
His estate has two gardens close to one another and contains matooke, jackfruit, avocado, and sweet bananas.
Muwawu also has a pine tree project on the bottom side of the estate and coffee on the upper section. These are the projects that occupy his time these days.
A Quiet Estate
While Muwawu comes to appreciate his house, his children have grown up and begun to live independent lives. One of his daughters resides in London, another just returned from Lebanon, and his son is married.
The only positive aspect of this situation is that he now has grandchildren who come to visit and bring life back into his normally quiet home.
When Muwawu’s grandkids are not there, his wife and house help only use a portion of the house because they do not require much at their age.
“If I were to build another house, it would be rentals to earn us an income. But right now I love the way my home is. Because I love green, I planted enough trees and flowers in my spacious compound and I no longer need to go out to Sheraton Kampala Hotel gardens to relax like we used to,” he further explains.
Although he enjoys performing, Muwawu thinks he would need a compelling cause to leave his home.
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