Generations actor Mandla Gaduka is relieved that he has finally won the long battle with his weight.

Gaduka, who plays Choppa in the SABC1 soapie, says he has been trying to lose weight for years.

He said the decision to shed the kilos came after he realised that he was getting bigger. His first step was to join SABC1's reality competition Dance Your Butt Off last year.

At the beginning of the competition, Gaduka weighed 90kg and by the time he was kicked out of Dance Your Butt Off, he had already started losing weight.

"It feels good to have lost so much weight. I feel like a new person," he says.

Born 28 years ago in Mahikeng in North West, Gaduka says after he was evicted from the competition, he continued with the Dance Your Butt Off eating programme.

The diet yielded positive results and he has now lost 20kg.

Asked if the slimming idea came from the Generations producers, Gaduka said it was a personal decision.

"I was on holiday in Mpumalanga and watching Generations one Saturday, I realised that I was really big. At the same time I saw an advert that Dance Your Butt-Off was having auditions. I thought this could be the programme to help me lose weight," he said.

Gaduka is known by many theatre-goers as a chubby actor who has been portraying roles far older than he is. In his last theatre production Foreplay, he played the late Gibson Kente.

"I wanted to lose weight for my health. I also wanted to see if I could score some new challenges in this career," Gaduka said.

He said he continues to eat healthy during the week, but treats himself at weekends.

He acted in the sitcom Gauteng Maboneng and in the award-winning movie District 9.