Lethukukhanya Mjaji aka Miss Albany. Photo: Lungisa Mjaji
Lethukukhanya Mjaji aka Miss Albany. Photo: Lungisa Mjaji

Home » The face that’s launched a thousand tweets: the Albany Bread Girl

The face that’s launched a thousand tweets: the Albany Bread Girl

An adorable three-year-old’s smile has captured the hearts of South Africans everywhere. Little Lethukukhanya Mjaji, with her sunny smile, was photographed by her uncle, Lungisa Mjaji (26)… and the photos have gone viral, even inspiring artists to paint her! Lungisa, who grew up in KZN, says he is a commercial photography student at Tshwane University […]

By Jenni Baxter
14-07-23 07:55
in Fab South African Stuff
Lethukukhanya Mjaji aka Miss Albany. Photo: Lungisa Mjaji
Lethukukhanya Mjaji aka Miss Albany. Photo: Lungisa Mjaji

An adorable three-year-old’s smile has captured the hearts of South Africans everywhere. Little Lethukukhanya Mjaji, with her sunny smile, was photographed by her uncle, Lungisa Mjaji (26)… and the photos have gone viral, even inspiring artists to paint her!

Lethukukhanya Mjaji aka Miss Albany. Photo: Lungisa Mjaji
Lethukukhanya Mjaji aka Miss Albany. Photo: Lungisa Mjaji

Lungisa, who grew up in KZN, says he is a commercial photography student at Tshwane University of Technology and that the viral “image is part of my project called ‘My Footprint’, aiming to capture the beauty of South Africa’s rural landscapes.”

He posted some photos on social media on Tuesday, saying: “Introducing Lethukukhanya Mjaji, my niece, Miss Albany, a 3-year-old student at Siphephile Creche. Despite her tender age, Lethukukhanya is exceptionally intelligent. At just 1 year old, she demonstrated an impressive ability to identify and name the months of the year.”

The photographs have already been viewed over a million times, and the toddler has become known nationwide as ‘Miss Albany’ or the ‘Albany Bread Girl’, thanks to the loaf of bread she’s carrying in some of the pictures.

The pictures have impressed many with Gauteng Urban Planning spokesperson Castro Ngobese tweeting: “Don’t go to the city and look for opportunities, bring them to the village????” – photographer extraordinaire @MjajiLungisani.

Lungisa told Times Live his wish was to capture SA’s love for children, and “I saw an opportunity to involve Albany, a well-known bread brand, and decided to incorporate it into the shoot.”

In answer to questions on Twitter, Lungisa said he didn’t sleep the night before the shoot. “My mom can tell you, I asked for the bread money one day before the shoot.”

People around the country are tagging Albany and begging them to make Lungisa’s three-year-old niece their ambassador. One fan even photoshopped her onto Albany’s billboard to demonstrate how great she’d look:

Lungisa says: “I am grateful for the support and affection from South Africa and for the opportunity to make a difference via my photography. It fills me with enormous excitement and a sense of accomplishment to witness the wonderful impact my work has had and the recognition it has earned.”

Many South Africans have been overwhelmed by the pictures, reminding them of their own childhood memories. ‘Kwasa’ said: “Such a beautiful pic, it reminds me of my younger self growing up in Flagstaff EC, I would always be sent to purchase bread, IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN ALBANY…..sometimes I would accidentally lose the money; then I would hang out at my friend’s place and play, scared to go home ?”

Tags: Albany Bread Girl Lethukukhanya Mjaji Lungisa Mjaji Miss Albany