Johannesburg- Generations:The Legacy star Vuyo Dabula has fiercely dismissed allegations that he refused to hug a fan over a bad odour.
Over the past week Vuyo has hogged headlines, after a disgruntled fan accused him of refusing to hug her, allegedly because she smelled. The female fan claimed that Vuyo allegedly told her to “take a good bath before asking for a hug.”
Speaking to The Juice this week Vuyo rubbished the claims, which he labelled “unjustified.”
On refusing to hug a ‘smelly’ fan:
Vuyo said that he’s astounded by the reports because it doesn’t make sense or has any truth to it. The incident which threw Vuyo into the spotlight apparently took place at the recent Metro FM Awards.
“I walked the black carpet like everyone else, stopped for pictures and interviews, greeted fans along the way and entered the venue. When I entered the venue I was told that I needed to go back because fans really wanted more pictures. This was unusual, but I did go back,” Vuyo explained.
Adding, “As with any major event fans were incredibly enthusiastic. I shook hands and hugged many people, but there were also many people that I couldn’t get to. It’s not because I didn’t want to, but because the logistics of the situation just didn’t allow me to – there were hundreds of fans pushing towards the barrier to grab my attention.”
Vuyo added that it definitely wasn’t an intentional gesture to purposely not greet some fans. “There were many people that I didn’t get to greet or hug, who is justified enough to be disgruntled in a situation like this?!,” he questioned.
The way the situation was interpreted:
The confused actor cannot understand how the situation could be interpreted in such a manner.
“It doesn’t make sense to me how these articles were published without me being given the chance to tell my side of the story. It also doesn’t make sense because a picture that is circulating along with the article clearly shows me shaking hands with fans,” he explained.
Interacting with fans:
The hunky actor who joined the soapie a year ago as Gadaffi quickly gained popularity among viewers.
There is also no doubt that Vuyo is adored and loved by thousands of female fans across the country, so it’s understandable that everyone wants a piece of him at an event.
“A lot of people know me and know how I love to interact with my fans. It’s quite surprising to me that people feel I’m so important because I don’t believe I am. The attention is always humbling,” he explained.
Vuyo says that he’s the type of person who will have regular conversations and hang out with complete strangers who recognise him.
“A few weeks ago I was in Polokwane and a group of guys recognised me. I ended up hanging out with them with no judgement or anything because that’s who I am. I was just happy that they recognised me,” he added.
-TheJuice