Romesh Ranganathan's wife 'incredibly upset' after vile racist abuse from online trolls

Romesh Ranganathan has shared that his wife, Leesa, was left incredibly upset after being targeted with vile racist abuse by online trolls. The comedian, who is 48 years old, opened up about the disturbing incident while appearing as a contestant on the BBC One television programme Celebrity Traitors. While Romesh has received praise from his co-stars on the popular reality show for his strong sense of sniffing out wrongdoings, the public spotlight has unfortunately exposed his family to malicious online attacks.

According to the reports, Leesa Ranganathan was targeted directly on her personal Instagram page by a social media user. The online troll branded her a race traitor specifically for marrying the well-known comedian. Romesh explained that his wife was deeply distressed by the hostile message, which told her that she was no longer welcome among white people and accused her of joining what the sender called the dark side.

Romesh noted that receiving racist messages is unfortunately not out of the ordinary for him personally, as he experiences them on a daily basis. However, seeing his partner become the target of online hostility brought a different kind of pain. He admitted feeling a sense of responsibility for the abuse because Leesa is married to him, noting that she would not face such targeting if she were married to a white man. Maintaining his trademark comedic outlook, he recalled trying to cheer her up by pointing to their home and joking about their swimming pool.

The comedian also discussed how racism has impacted his three sons, Alex, Theo, and Charlie, as they have grown up. He shared that his children have encountered discriminatory remarks at school over the years, including one instance where a child hurled a racial slur at Alex. Romesh expressed his belief that children repeat such language because they hear it at home, noting that it leaves him viewing the parents of those children as racists.

Addressing how to handle such abhorrent behavior, the television star offered his perspective on not giving perpetrators unnecessary power. While acknowledging that racism is completely horrible and abhorrent, he cautioned against letting inflammatory language immediately ignite an explosive reaction, stating that giving trolls that level of power is something he actively advises his children against avoiding.

As the BBC One series heads toward its highly anticipated finale, Romesh continues his television run while navigating the realities of public exposure. The star's candid revelations shed light on the persistent online abuse that public figures and their families are frequently forced to contend with in modern media.