Home and Away star Ethan Browne has opened up about the importance of portraying Māori culture respectfully on screen, revealing his personal connection to Ari Parata’s death storyline.
Speaking to Yahoo Lifestyle, Browne (who plays Tane Parata) discussed filming the Māori funeral scenes (tangi) for his on-screen brother and how it had a personal connection to his own family.
“I was fortunate enough to offer up one of my uncle’s songs, [and he] had just passed away. It’s a beautiful Māori song…it was quite fitting,” Browne said.
“It felt so real as well, and tangi is important in Māori culture, so it hit home…quite a lot.”
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The actor added that it was important for the crew to make sure the tangi was filmed with respect, bringing cultural advisors onboard for filming.
“It was very important [to portray it correctly]. Right down to the sort of clothing we’d wear, or having water at the door for the hand washing – all the details we wanted to get right,” the actor continued.
“It was a hard time because there’s a lot of pressure to try and do it right.”
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Ari Parata (played by Rob Kipa-Williams) exited the soap after he was tragically diagnosed with an incredibly rare form of cancer. Following his final scenes on the show, Kipa-Williams thanked the show for including Māori culture.
“This Iconic Ozzie TV show took risks. I’m honoured to have co-created Māori cultural storylines, and will forever be proud of those scenes that made it to screen.. it was true teamwork.. My hope is this opens the door for more diversity,” he said.
“Thank you for everything Ariki Wiremu Parata, you taught me a lot. I’m gonna miss you.”
Home and Away airs weekdays at 1.45pm on Channel 5 and 6pm on 5STAR. First-look screenings air at 6.30pm on 5STAR and the show also streams on My5.
In Australia, the show airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7pm on Channel 7 and streams on 7plus.
Selected classic episodes are available via Prime Video in the UK.
Read more Home and Away spoilers on our dedicated homepage
