Kumar Sanu’s ex-wife Rita Bhattacharya alleges she was starved and tortured during pregnancy: He took me to court on the basis of cruelty...

Rita Bhattacharya talks about Kumar Sanu behaviour when she was pregnant

Singer Kumar Sanu’s personal life has often made headlines, not just for his music but for the ups and downs in his relationships.

His messy divorce from ex-wife Rita Bhattacharya and his connection with veteran actress Kunickaa Sadanand have kept the tabloids busy. Recently, Rita spoke openly about the painful times she faced, especially during her pregnancy with their youngest son, Jaan, revealing that she was mistreated by Kumar Sanu’s family. She also touched on his affair and the early struggles they endured together.

In an honest chat with Film Window, Rita said she was the one who really helped shape Kumar Sanu’s career. “He is a great singer, but as a human being, it would be best to talk about him as less as possible. He was never ambitious. It was my dream to make him a singer, I pushed him. I helped Kumar Sanu become Kumar Sanu,” she shared.

Their journey to Mumbai wasn’t easy. “We didn’t have any money or transportation when we came to Mumbai. It was completely zero. He used to wear a lungi at that time. He lies all the time that his family sent him to Mumbai. He should skip the question if he doesn’t want to answer, why lie? He keeps lying the whole day. Hence, all my three kids that it is high time, you have to talk. I used to push him out to go and struggle in Bombay. We used to sleep on the floor without a fan,” Rita recalled. She added that after the success of Aashiqui, Kumar Sanu changed. “He became ill-mannered, he was never like that.”

Rita also revealed how Kumar Sanu distanced himself from her and their youngest son, even during important family moments like their elder son’s wedding. “Time and again, his love life has been discussed within media. I requested Sanu earlier to say something and put a stop to this when our elder son was getting engaged. He likes when his life is publicly discussed, be it negatively or in a positive light. He didn’t respond and blocked me and Jaan at that time. That was very insulting.”

Looking back on their marriage, Rita said, “I never thought that we should separate. I was a mother of two kids and my husband became very successful, beyond one’s thinking. I never stepped out of the house. I wasn’t allowed. I wasn’t allowed to go to the parlour or get waxed.”

She spoke about the heartbreak of their divorce, which happened while she was pregnant. “I lost my father when I was pregnant with Jaan. The limits of torture were crossed. Sanu took me to court on the basis of cruelty. I want to ask something, someone who got married in 1986, won so many awards, had a huge bungalow, so many luxuries, two kids and one on the way, what all I would have done that he achieved so much success? He became the legend and took me to court on cruelty ground?”

Rita added, “He took me to court during my pregnancy. He even had an affair during that time, that came out today. And, he dragged me to court? I was very young at that time, I felt like my whole world crushed, and my family was shocked. He did such a huge party a year ago saying I was the reason behind his success.”

Despite everything, Rita said she never had the chance to talk to Kumar Sanu face-to-face about the divorce. “Before dying, I want to know the reason directly from him. He used to make fun of me at court, came with those same people. When I was pregnant with Jaan, I was not even fed properly. I used to feel sick all the time.”

She also revealed some heartbreaking details about the way his family treated her during that time. “They went out once and locked the kitchen storage. I sent the watchman, got one kg rice and then cooked food for myself. They tortured me and I was pregnant, I wouldn’t do anything. They even stopped getting milk for my children, told the paediatrician that we won’t pay your money. It would be wrong to call them human beings.”

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Meanwhile, Kunickaa Sadanand, who was involved with Kumar Sanu during his troubled marriage, shared her side too. She said, “I was like a wife to him, I considered him like my husband. His wife smashed my car with a hockey stick. She would come outside my house and scream. But I understood her. She wanted money for her children, she wasn’t wrong. She said she didn’t want him back.” Recently on Bigg Boss, Kunickaa revealed, “He was a married man, had separated from his wife, and we were in a live-in relationship. I was not married at that time, we were living in, but then he had an affair with another girl. I left him after he accepted cheating on me.”

Kumar Sanu and Rita married in 1986 and had three children—Jiko, Jassi, and Jaan Kumar Sanu. Their marriage ended in 1994 following Kumar Sanu’s affair with Kunickaa, with Rita gaining custody of their children.