by Thinus Ferreira
Viewers said they couldn't properly hear him, Thimna and Millie thought he might be a player and Durang Atembe surprised when he admitted to the other islanders in Love Island SA that he has had sex with over 100 women.
After the buff 22-year old personal trainer from Cape Town became the second Islander to get dumped, TVwithThinus asked him about his "century" in the bedroom, what he thinks he could have done differently in the show and his gym dreams.
Durang reveals who from the villa he'd still keep talking to, what viewers won't know about his time in the villa and why it seemed as if he lost some energy the days before he got dumped.
You're from Cameroon. How did you make it to Love Island South Africa?
I came to South Africa when I was 6. I was born in Cameroon but I grew up in South Africa. Love Island SA was just an opportunity for me to tell my story and I try and find love and that's how I ended up on the show.
What do you think you could have done differently and do you think you could have saved your relationship with Thimna, or was it not worth or salvageable?
What could I have done differently about what happened in the villa? Nothing at all, you know.
I went in being myself - that's the most important thing after all. It was, actually right for me to get to know two people at the same time (Thimna and Millie).
In my relationship with Thima or Millie it was my choice to go for either of them - obviously, it didn't work in my favour.
At the same time, yeah, that's definitely positive about myself, I went in trying to get to know two people, which was right because it was early days, and it worked against me. But it was early days. I'm positive about my experience and that's the most important thing.
As a professional rugby player you said that you were apprehensive to tell your dad that you're not going to be playing rugby anymore after an injury. Now you were about to enter Love Island SA and a reality show. Did you tell your parents or were you scared to tell, or how did you approach it?
You must understand that rugby was a big part of my life.
It changed my life. It made me go to good schools, scholarships and big opportunities for a person who comes from a poor African background. Love Island SA was an opportunity for myself - I'm very independent.
I've definitely told my parents that I'm going because they have every right to know and my dad supports everything that I do, so it was not hard for me to tell him. I'm a grown man so I can make my own decisions, so there was definitely nothing with me telling him that.
You looked as if you lost some energy during your last two days in the villa - maybe it's just a perception. You seemed more exuberant earlier when the show started. Were you thinking and plotting, or were you already checked out mentally, or what was going through your mind?
I was just doing me.
I felt like I'm real and there is a part of me waiting in the villa for that right person to show up because I was obviously not interested in anyone in the villa.
I was just hanging out and talking and being me. It was a long day, I just wanted to chill. You can't talk to everyone constantly for a whole day. I was definitely just doing me and having peace with meditating about life.
What was funny is that people said it sounds as if you're mumbling - not that they can't hear what you're saying but that it doesn't make sense how you speak and put ideas together. Do you think you speak strangely in terms of how you express ideas?
Not at all, not at all. Ha ha.
I heard that's what people said when I left the villa. I was actually laughing about it though because I do speak clearly.
Maybe at that time, my tone of voice does seem to go down but I do definitely sound clear and speak clearly. And I speak good English. There is nothing wrong with my English at all.
I was definitely laughing about the comments though but at the same time I'm still feeling good, so yeah.
There were gasps when you revealed that you've been with over 100 women and have had sex with over 100 women. Is that really true?
Yes. Yes, it's true.
I think if you have to go on a show like Love Island SA or any reality show you need to tell the truth about who you are and what you do because lies do not go far. It's definitely true about how many people I've slept with.
At the end of the day, it's my experience. It's my life. I enjoyed it. I didn't want to lie and didn't want to be dishonest and I didn't want to be dishonest about my past.
At the end of the day, I'm a young guy. We do things and we do have to experience life and the most important thing is that I wasn't lying. I was honest on national TV about myself.
But I thought why didn't you rather reveal something else because knowing you've slept with 100 women, wouldn't that make the women in the villa feel more reluctant to strike up a relationship with you, and make it more difficult for you to stay coupled up?
That fact will actually be a good fact because sometimes people take that stuff very personal, okay.
All the women in the villa were very mature about it. If I had to tell them a different fact that's something sexual about me, I'd rather let them find out personally one-on-one.
That was a personal fact about my life, about my past experience coming to the villa. The right person would definitely understand that; would definitely have approached me and ask me "Hey Durang, listen here, is this true?" and I would tell my reason why.
So I definitely think that fact, of me telling how many people I've slept with, was the right thing to do, because when you see how someone reacts to you in a certain type of way, when someone looks at you in a certain way, if someone judges you in a certain type of way ...
I didn't get judged at all. I was being honest.
You're a beast physically. How did your workout routine fall off inside the villa and will it take harder work to get back to your routine? You said that the gym is your "happy place" and that you one day would like to own your own gym.
In terms of fitness, I've always been on my game.
I've been very determined to stick to my goals. I train hard for myself and my self-confidence. My fitness routine didn't change at all, my eating routine didn't change at all. I kept to my diet inside the villa, you can ask anyone there.
It's still a big goal to own a gym.
Gym has been a big part of my life because I'm a young guy that likes thinking a lot about personal stuff and that's the one place that actually makes me take all the emotions, and takes all the happiness and all the - just different feelings - that makes me feel better.
I think a lot of people can relate to it. It's a place where you take a long day at work, a stressful day at work and at the end of the day get to make yourself feel good.
Owning a gym - I definitely want to own a gym. My brand is A-Fit Changing Lives. I've changed a lot of people's lives in Cape Town. There are people who I've changed through different ways through me being there and being supportive of them. So I definitely want to finish that goal of mine of owning a gym.
What might viewers not know from your time in the villa?
I've definitely experienced a lot of hard times in the villa and went to some dark corners but my time in the villa was amazing - couldn't change it for the world.
I've made good friendships, good memories, had good experiences with them, understanding more about myself more in that small little villa in a small little place with beautiful personalities and beautiful people coming in and understanding more about the difficulties of opening up and being yourself.
That's the most important thing - and I was really good at that. I've definitely learnt a lot about myself in that space.
My time and my experience and my memories will always be there and I'll always stay positive about it.
Getting dumped second isn't coming close to affecting me or making me feel a certain kind of way.
The fact is that I'm positive about how I left, I'm positive how things went and I'm just grateful for where I'm now and being healthy and smiling and being clean and having shelter, so I'm grateful.
Do you get to keep the cute bag with your name on that you walked out with?
Do I get to keep the bag? I'm leaving to make a lot of bag after this! Ha ha.
I'm going to make a lot of good bags after this, man, a lot of good bags. There's so much that I want to do and I want to achieve it, so I'm excited.
Who did you think were your biggest enemy and did you ever really trust anyone in the villa and who, if you were to run into them afterwards, would you still talk to, or not talk to ever again?
I had no enemies in the villa at all, I'm not a person who hates on anyone else.
I wouldn't hate on anyone even if someone hates me - I'm a better man not hating them back.
I'll talk to everyone. I was happy for Libho, I spoke to Libho as a gent to tell him my experience, to do things at the right time, to just be you - I'll talk to anyone.
It was a good time to get to know each other, a short period of time, and I made good friendships, so I'll just talk to anyone. There's no-one who I'll not talk to or hate.
Love Island South Africa is on weekdays on M-Net (DStv 101) at 21:30
