Film: Tales of the Accidental City
Venue: Mathare Social Justice Centre
Time: 10.00 am
Date: 15 October, 2022
Entry: FREE
In order to show the different faces of the city, I was privileged to work with other Kenyan writers – Sitawa Namwalie, Kevin Mwachiro and
Margaret Muthee. Their short stories in a collection entitled Humans of Nairobi provided the diversity of perspectives that I wanted. I plucked out
characters from their stories and put them in a room together to birth Tales of the Accidental City. These four characters would not ordinarily be in a room together, not in our stratified city! But stuck in a court-mandated therapy class, they have no choice but to reveal themselves. For example,
Jacinda, a feisty domestic worker who is not afraid to speak truth to power, is able to fully confront the privileged Louis Njoroge, grandson of the
first African mayor of Nairobi – a man whose internalised baggage makes him a parody of the post-colonial African bourgeoisie despite his attempts to
make a difference in society. Sarah Obama represents the ‘invisible’ people in the city, and the youth for whom this country and continent is meant to
belong, but who are not given the opportunity to thrive. Diana, like the other women in the film, is strong and determined to make a better life for
herself, but she is not of the city and has to discover its harsh realities from the moment she arrives from her village.My hope for the film is that it is watched in communities, especially by Africans, so that it can spark conversations around inequality, social
justice, urbanisation and mental health, as well as spur citizens to demand more.Thank you!
Maimouna Jallow – Director
