Mkhanyiseli Mfutye is seen in front of his homestead's house in Mqanduli, Eastern Cape, which was built thanks to donations from social media followers.

• Eastern Cape man Mkhanyiseli Mfutye, 36, went from being shunned by his community due to hygiene issues and intellectual disabilities to becoming a viral sensation.
• Donations from social media supporters funded a brand-new three-room house for Mfutye’s family, replacing the dilapidated rondavel where he lived with his sister.
• The speech-impaired man took his first aeroplane flight to Cape Town for a music festival performance, receiving a hero’s welcome at the airport.
• Here’s how he went from a village outcast to his first music festival gig 1 190km away from home.

A heartwarming tale of friendship and social media’s life-changing power transformed Mkhanyiseli Mfutye’s circumstances from bleak to bright.

When fellow villager Vulikhaya “Fish” Zilindlovu began posting videos of himself with the intellectually disabled Mfutye on TikTok and Facebook in 2020, he never imagined it would transform his friend from a village outcast into an internet sensation.

Until recently, Mfutye, 36, lived an isolated life in his Kwaaiman village near Mqanduli, with some residents avoiding him because of hygienic concerns.

But his circumstances changed when “Fish” began posting videos of himself and the speech-impaired Mfutye on social media, catapulting him to unexpected fame.

The transformation has been remarkable: From living with his sister in a dilapidated rondavel, the Mfutye family now owns a brand-new three-room house funded by donations from social media supporters.

Before Zilindlovu came into his life, Mfutye lived with his sister Nombuyiselo.

They have no parents and have been living off Mfutye’s disability grant.

But, on 6 March this year, Mfutye boarded his first aeroplane to Cape Town for a cultural festival in Khayelitsha, where Cape Town International Airport staff gave him a hero’s welcome.

His fame began in 2020, when Zilindlovu created the social media pages “Inja and Fish” on TikTok and Facebook.

They now boast 1.1 million followers on TikTok and 585 000 on Facebook.

Zilindlovu told News24 that Mfutye suffers from an intellectual and developmental disability that affects his physical, learning, language, and behavioural areas.

A few years ago, he said, people would take videos of Mfutye to mock him on social media.

“This deeply touched me. That’s when I knew I had an opportunity and a responsibility to change the circumstances of my friend,” said Zilindlovu.

He said some people in the villages had the wrong mentality about people with disabilities.

“If someone [in the villages] is too poor and not clean, they are undermined. But, at the end of the day, these are human beings. Their circumstances [require] someone to get closer and help where needed.”

Zilindlovu said the community used to chase Mfutye away from traditional family events and gatherings because of his condition.

“He would be so saddened after being chased away, though he had no energy to fight for himself.”

While the two men are not related, Zilindlovu decided to adopt Mfutye as his brother. He calls Mfutye “Inja” because he used to call him “nja yam” (my dog), which is a slang term of endearment between male friends in many local communities.

“I would ask him to take a bath and [then] we would wear our clean clothes, take videos and post on social media. Initially, some people criticised me for posting a disabled person. But I knew I wanted my friend to get help [and I got] permission from his biological sister,” said Zilindlovu.

After posting several videos, some social media users began appreciating Zilindlovu’s efforts to ensure that Mfutye was being taken care of.

They would drive together to attend social gatherings in locations outside of their village.

“After people began liking my videos, I decided to campaign for social media users to donate so that we could build the Mfutye family a decent house. People started donating. We bought the building material. The house was constructed over a period of three months.

“We were then invited to appear at a music festival in Cape Town, because people on social media love Mfutye. We had a special invitation from [maskanda artist] Mphathiwehlelo MC and we are so grateful for his gesture.

“We are grateful for the staff at the Cape Town International Airport for giving my brother a warm welcome,” said Zilindlovu.

The outpouring of love from social media users led to Zilindlovu creating the Fish and Inja Foundation to help other people living with disabilities.

This came after he had received a plea from a concerned community member from Willowvale – about 110km from Mqanduli – pleading with him to also help a family with a disabled man in the Fort Malan village.

“There is already help from companies and my social media users to help that family,” said Zilindlovu.

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