Golden Nymph triumph: Ramaphosa congratulates Leleti Khumalo and Anant Singh
The film, a heart-wrenching portrayal of Johannesburg's homeless, won Best Creation.
'I congratulate Leleti Khumalo and Anant Singh for flying our flag and for spotlighting one of our nation's socio-economic challenges,' reads a post on the president's X account.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has congratulated actor Leleti Khumalo and film producer Anant Singh for their win at the 64th Monte-Carlo Television Festival.
The short film Don't Give Up, starring Khumalo, produced by Singh and written and directed by Darrell Roodt, won the festival's Golden Nymph Award in the Best Creation category. The awards ceremony took place on Tuesday, 17 June and in attendance were Prince Albert and Princess Charlene, who presented two awards.
PascalThe festival, originally created by Prince Rainier III of Monaco and now under the patronage of Prince Albert, showcases the best of television worldwide. The free festival is open to everyone and runs over five days, culminating with the closing ceremony and the Golden Nymph presentation.
On Thursday, President Ramaphosa shared on X that he bumped into Khumalo at OR International Airport during his travels to and from the G7 Leaders' Summit in Canada.
'Leleti did have something to declare: she'd returned from the Monte-Carlo Television Festival in Monaco, where she and acclaimed film producer Anant Singh had won the prestigious Golden Nymph Award for their work on the short film Don't Give Up, which portrays life on the streets of Johannesburg for a begging mother of two.
'I congratulate Leleti Khumalo and Anant Singh for flying our flag and for spotlighting one of our nation's socio-economic challenges,' reads the post.
On my travels to and from the G7 Leaders' Summit in Canada, I had the good and proud fortune of bumping into our veteran star performer Leleti Khumalo at OR Tambo International Airport.
Leleti did have something to declare: she'd returned from the Monte Carlo Television Festival… pic.twitter.com/iI18v0DCsS
— Cyril Ramaphosa 🇿🇦 (@CyrilRamaphosa) June 19, 2025
The film follows Faith, a homeless beggar and a single mother of two young sons, Lucky and Siyabonga, who live in an abandoned car in an alleyway in central Johannesburg.
'One day, while washing her sons at a tap in a bus depot, Faith is assaulted by a security guard. In her bid to escape this battering, she and her sons try to run away, but Siyabonga gets caught in the wire fence and almost has his thumb ripped off. Faith is unable to help him beyond wrapping it up in a torn piece of her skirt. She begs for money from disinterested commuters on her corner,' reads the synopsis.
Watch the trailer here.
Accepting the award, Khumalo thanked the festival, the Videovision team and director Darrell Roodt 'who came up with this amazing project.'
She continued: 'And I thank Anant for always believing in me and for always having faith in me. To the Prince and Princess, thank you for having us here in Monte Carlo, and I'd also like to thank my family for always supporting the work I do. Thank you so much; this is humbling.'
Stephane Cardinale - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images
Singh said that winning was a pleasant surprise.
'This is a film about homeless people who have no voice and has no dialogue. It is essentially a homage to the silent movie and it represents homeless people all around the world, and the music of Philip Glass and Peter Gabriel give it that special magic.
'We are delighted to have this little South African film about homeless people win this special prize. I'd like to acknowledge the creation of these awards by Prince Rainier and Princess Grace, acknowledge your Highness Prince Albert, for continuing to celebrate the creative communities, which is so important. It's my third year here at the Festival, and I am delighted to take home this Golden Nymph with Leleti.'
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