After a decade outside the industry, acting continued to pull Gashiki quietly, persistently, until she found herself back where she always belonged, on screen.
The Kalasha-nominated actress is making a bold return through Adam to Eve, a gender-bending dramedy.
In the show, she stars as the sharp-tongued and unapologetic Mrs. Obama alongside Blessing Lung’aho and Ellah Maina.
The series follows Adam, a charming Nairobi playboy played by Lung’aho, whose life takes an unexpected turn after he mysteriously transforms into a woman, Eve, portrayed by Maina.
The bizarre transformation forces him into a journey of self-discovery while confronting the realities women navigate daily.
For her, the story instantly stood out because of its unusual but relatable themes.
“It’s not forced comedy,” she says. “You’ll have a good laugh, you’ll have a good cry, but then it’s a laughable cry.”
Watching Adam struggle to adapt to his new reality, she says, creates both humour and discomfort in equal measure.
“If you woke up one morning as the opposite sex, it would make you feel crazy,” she says.
Ironically, Mrs. Obama was never meant to be her role.
“Originally, I wasn’t supposed to play Mrs. Obama. I auditioned for the role of a butler,” she reveals. “Then they changed it and said, let her do Mrs. Obama.”
The role ended up becoming one she deeply connected with.
“She’s assertive. She knows she’s got it and doesn’t care about flaunting it, but I think she also needs to tone down a bit and come back to earth.”
Long before her return to television, Gashiki had already built her foundation in theatre under Afrika Nasaha before making her television debut in 2013 on Parasites, which aired on Swahili Africa Magic.
But just as her acting career was gaining momentum, life forced her to step away. “Something very personal happened, I can’t really get into it. But it forced me to step back,” she says.
“Let’s be real… you can’t always live off film in Kenya. I had to survive,” she adds.
With support from her father, she joined the Murang’a County Government as an information officer, spending nearly 10 years working in public service while remaining away from the spotlight.
Still, acting never fully left her mind.
“Acting is addictive. It keeps calling you. No matter how long you stay away, it pulls you back,” she says.
Her return finally came in 2023 when she landed the role of Bi Dokta in Haki Mwitu on Maisha Magic. Since then, she has gradually rebuilt her acting career with appearances in the youth drama Jiji and the short film Transaction.
“Transaction was special to me. I manifested it,” she says. “It told a raw African woman’s story.”
The short film, written, directed and produced by Wanjeri Gakuru, premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam and later earned Gashiki a nomination at the 2026 Kalasha Awards for her leading performance.
Her comeback experience, she says, reminded her why storytelling still matters deeply to her. While filming Jiji alongside Xwaya Xavier and Nungari Kiore, she found herself emotionally consumed by scenes touching on domestic violence.
“I really went there emotionally, that’s the kind of storytelling that matters,” she says.
Away from acting, she describes herself as far quieter than many people expect.
“I’m not the bubbly, loud personality people think, I love quiet moments. I enjoy stillness.”
She also speaks candidly about how society often forgets actors are human beings dealing with personal struggles behind the scenes.
“Sometimes people forget that actors are also people, you could be going through something but you still have to show up and perform,” she says
As her acting journey enters a new chapter, she says her biggest dream is to continue telling authentic African stories that resonate globally.Close