Revered icons in the world of Māori performing arts as leaders of Auckland kapa haka group Te Waka Huia, Ngapo (Bub) and Pimia (Nen) Wehi remain humble people despite their astonishing achievements.

Screening in Māori Television’s New Zealand Documentary slot, Pakipūmeka Aotearoa, on Wednesday May 9 at 8.30 PM, BUB & NEN is the story of the love this couple share: for themselves and their culture. It is also about the love that they have passed on to their children, their grandchildren, and to the art of kapa haka.

Documentary director Tainui Stephens, who became a member of Te Waka Huia in 1982, says the couple was to become an enormously important influence in his life. They were teachers and mentors for himself and many others who were on their own journeys of personal discovery.

Stephens says he is always amazed by the artistry and creativity that the pair generates. They lead the cultural group with wisdom and love, and the calibre of the songs they write is incredible.

  He feels the main reason for the couple’s various successes is simply the fact that the two of them comprise a powerful team. Their shared passion for the Māori world drives and guides their life together.  

“As a couple, they are obviously in love,” Stephens explains. “As a mother and father or uncle and aunty, they are full of maternal and paternal instincts. And as kaumātua, so many people young and old have faith in their advice. They are leaders without peer – and they do it from a basis of aroha.

“In the documentary, BUB & NEN, we are privileged with an insight into their relationship. We discover that the life of this couple is, in fact, a moving love story. It is a tale of total commitment to each other, and of rejoicing in their God given gifts.”

BUB & NEN screens in Māori Television’s New Zealand Documentary slot, Pakipūmeka Aotearoa, on Wednesday May 9 at 8.30 PM.

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