'Kumar Sanu denied his children milk and medicine, didn’t check on them during Mumbai floods': Ex-wife claims

Decades after their split, Kumar Sanu’s ex-wife Rita Bhattacharya has opened up about a painful side of the Bollywood singer. According to Rita, Sanu not only abandoned their children during their early years but continued to remain absent as they grew into adults. Speaking in an interview to Siddharth Kanan, she revealed that she was pregnant with their third son when Sanu filed for divorce on the grounds of cruelty. “He doesn’t even wish them on their birthdays,” she said, recalling the 2005 Mumbai floods when two of her sons went missing and he showed no concern.

Rita also alleged that Sanu tried to stop their youngest son, Jaan, from joining Bigg Boss. She said that Jaan, who wasn’t even born when the couple separated, still struggles to find work as a singer. Recalling her third pregnancy, she said, “He denied them milk. He denied them medical care. You don’t know how much this man has tortured my children. The milk man told me that he’d been told not to come over any more, but he said that he would still give me milk. Same with the doctor who’d delivered all three of my sons.”

During the divorce proceedings, when she was pregnant with Jaan, Sanu reportedly sent her just Rs 100 every day. “I sold all my jewellery. I have seen the highest of highs and the lowest of lows in life,” she said, adding that Sanu remained distant from his three children even as they grew up. “In this industry, many people have divorced their partners, but they remain close to their children. Not once has this man sent them a cake on their birthday. Nor did he wish them. During the 2005 floods, I called him for help.”

Tearfully, Rita recounted the terrifying night when her two older sons went missing. “Zico and Jaan had gone missing. I was looking for them all night. It was terrifying. I thought I’d lose them. Even then, that man didn’t ask if his children are okay.” She said her eldest son would call out for Sanu after he left, and that Jaan has “never even been held by his father.” Accusing Sanu of lying in past interviews, Rita added that she ensured her sons received the best education possible by selling her possessions and investing wisely.