How Sue Nyathi’s ‘The Polygamist’ Found a Global Audience
BY NATHAN GUMA
WHEN renowned Bulawayo-bred author Sukoluhle “Sue” Nyathi left corporate finance in 2018 to pursue writing full-time, people close to her felt she had made the worst move of her career.
She had been writing for some time, but it had not paid dividends.
“So it was truly a leap of faith to say if I fully believe in what I’m doing, then I’ll put my weight behind it and see where it takes me,” she says.
Now, The Polygamist, a 22-episode Netflix telenovela based on her 2012 book of the same name, has reached number one in 21 countries and the Top 10 in 62, amassing 27.6 million views and counting.
The series follows Jonasi Gomora, a wealthy Zimbabwean businessman who lives a luxurious lifestyle while secretly balancing relationships with four powerful women.
As secrets unravel, his carefully structured empire faces chaos, testing his wives’ endurance and threatening to destroy the family’s public legacy.
The series’ success has become a major triumph for Nyathi, who spent US$3,000 to self-publish 500 copies of the novel after completing it in 2012.
Rejection
Nyathi said she initially faced rejection from traditional publishers who believed there was no market for the book.
However, following the show’s Netflix debut, physical book sales tripled.
“When I wrote The Polygamist in 2010, I completed the first draft and I looked for a publisher in 2011 together with my editor Paula Murray, and there were no publishers that were interested in the book,” she said at the ‘Stories Across Borders: An Evening with Sue Nyathi’ event held at the US Embassy in Harare, at Deputy Chief of Mission Phil Nervig’s residence.
“They thought there was no market for it or it just didn’t resonate with the publishing ethos of those firms and then Paula said, have you ever considered self-publishing and it’s something that I had never considered.”
Nyathi said The Polygamist remained largely unknown for years before attempts were made to adapt it for television.
“Then there’s another attempt in 2016, 2016 to 2018 and it didn’t work out and then the third attempt,” she says. “I say third time lucky, happened in 2022, that’s when I was approached by Stained Glass and they had just done The Wife, which was a popular telenovela.
“It’s only in 2024 when Netflix entered the conversation and that was simply because Stained Glass were looking for a streamer, they needed a distribution, an off-take for their product and Netflix was interested.”
US Platforms Helping in Global Storytelling and Cultural Bridges
Deputy Chief of Mission Phil Nervig said that Sue’s storytelling is helping put Zimbabwean talent on international screens.
“Millions of viewers around the world have fallen in love with a story born in Bulawayo. That is no small achievement,” Nervig said during the
Nervig also said Sue’s success shows how American innovation and Zimbabwean creativity can help enhance cultural understanding, drive economic opportunity and bring people together.
“Creative excellence has long been one of America’s greatest exports. Our films, our music, our platforms have traveled the globe for decades. But the real magic happens when that platform becomes a two-way street: when a story from Zimbabwe finds a home on Netflix and reaches audiences everywhere,” he said.
“As we mark 250 years of American independence and the values of liberty and free expression that have always fueled our creative industries, it feels especially fitting to celebrate a story of creative freedom flourishing right here in Zimbabwe.”
For Sue’s journey, belief and hard work are key to success for an upcoming author.
“Most of the times, we are afraid to follow our dreams and part of following your dreams is actually putting your weight behind it,” she says.
For the U.S. Embassy in Zimbabwe, working closely with Zimbabwe’s creative economy has been a priority.
“We want to connect you to American platforms, institutions, and opportunities that can help the next Sue Nyathi,” says Nervig.
