My Friend Ngigi [2020]

My Friend Ngigi is a documentary about a childhood friend and former classmate who has a mental health problem and has been living in the streets of Githurai since the year 2003. The story takes us through a relationship of the friendship between the narrator (me) and how Ngigi ended up in the streets, his background and how he is perceived by those who interact with him.

Ngigi was my classmate throughout primary schooling from 1993 to 2000. Ngigi was among the bright students in our class. However, in 2003 he left his family for the streets of Githurai an area with both formal and informal housing and has been there ever since. I meet Ngigi in 2014 after many years and find that he has an injury he got from a train accident. One of his hipbone is fractured and I house him for two months after which he goes back to the streets. I continue assisting him as a friend for his basics as he continues with his life in the streets.