Charles Nkurikiyinka, popularly known by his character name 'Umukonyine', needs no introduction to the Rwandan film industry. He is an actor in a local YouTube series, Umuturanyi, where he imitates the lifestyle and dialect of Rwandan pastoralists in Eastern Province known as 'Abakonyine'. Many know Nkurikiyinka as an actor, but there's a lot more to the ‘Umuturanyi’ star than acting and appearing in YouTube interviews, and that's adding his expertise to the hospitality industry to ensure it serves both cinema lovers and people in the hospitality industry. Speaking to The New Times, Nkurikiyinka traced his love for the hospitality and acting industry back to when he graduated from high school and started looking for a job. Nkurikiyinka recalls his first job as a waiter at a Chinese restaurant at Century Park, where he learnt all the ethics of hospitality before getting into acting and cooking. At that time, all I wanted to do was earn a living, and being able to speak English helped a lot. I was lucky enough to get a job in a big Chinese restaurant and that's where it all started, he said. It was at this time that Nkurikiyinka began to juggle acting and hospitality, something that has made him a household name in the country in both careers. After Century Park, I moved to another restaurant called The Hut before I started working with Uncles, but I managed to shoot and work in the kitchen as well, he added. How acting influenced Nkurikiyinka's hospitality career Nkurikiyinka made a name for himself in the Umuturanyi series and earned him trust in the business circles, so much so that he was made supervisor at Uncle's Restaurant, owned by renowned musician Uncle Austin, before moving on to Giddy Up Bistro located in Kimihurura, Kigali. I was approached by a client who knew me very well both in the film and hospitality industry and he asked me to work with him. That's when my career in the hospitality industry took a turn and I went from being a waiter to a restaurant manager, he shares. The actor advises players in the creative industry not to get comfortable in their careers and try out different things.
