Romesh Ranganathan details his rift with his brother Dinesh

‘It took us months to sort it out’: Romesh Ranganathan details his rift with his brother Dinesh over money problems following their father’s death

• The presenter fell out with his brother after their father Ranga’s death in 2011
• Romesh was accused of ‘not helping out’ with the family finances by his brother
• After their father’s death, it was revealed the family was in financial turmoil
• Ranga was previously jailed for fraud, and Romesh’s home was repossessed

Romesh Ranganathan has revealed that he had a huge rift with his brother Dinesh over money problems following their father’s death.

The presenter, 44, told Griefcast that he fell out with his sibling Dinesh after he felt that he ‘wasn’t doing enough’ to support his family, when he quit teaching to pursue a career in stand-up comedy.

Romesh went onto reveal it took months for him and his brother to repair their fractured relationship, and they only made up when he spoke about the row in his autobiography in 2018.

Family:Romesh Ranganathan has revealed that he had a huge rift with his brother Dinesh over money problems following their father’s death (pictured with his mother Shanthia)

Romesh explained that his rift with his brother began when their father Ranga died in 2011, revealing the family had huge financial problems.

At the time Romesh had given up his teaching job to pursue comedy, but was struggling to provide for his family.

He said: ‘My dad passing away caused massive problems with me and my brother. We had this situation where we found out our financial situation was a house of cards, and we weren’t sure what was going to happen to the house.

‘At the same time I wasn’t making any money from comedy, and it was a really high-pressure situation. My brother felt like I wasn’t doing enough to help out.’

Drama! The presenter revealed that he fell out with his sibling Dinesh after he felt that he ‘wasn’t doing enough’ to support his family, when he quit teaching to pursue comedy

Detailing the moment that their relationship fell apart, Romesh continued: ‘I remember having a massive row with him in the foyer of a theatre.

‘I shouted, ”I’m never going to forget how you’ve treated me.” And the argument continues. That created a rift between us that took months to sort out.

‘Every now and again… it’s like a scar. If one of us perceives the other to be not doing the brotherly thing, we’ll fall back on that dynamic very easily.’

Back in 2018, Romesh revealed he and Dinesh eventually repaired their rift when he detailed their fall-out in his biography.

Speaking at the Cheltenham Literature Festival at the time, he said: ‘Just today my brother texted and said, ‘I’ve just been listening to the audiobook and I am really sorry. It’s given me a new appreciation of it from your side.’

Romesh’s family had already faced a turbulent time, as his father Ranga left their mother Shanthia when the comic was just 12.

Making amends: Romesh went onto reveal it took months for him and his brother to repair their relationship, and they only made up when he spoke about the row in his autobiography in 2018

Originally, the brothers attended Reigate Grammar School, but were forced to move to a local comprehensive when their father was jailed for fraud and their family home was repossessed.

Romesh and his mother were forced to live in a B&B for 18 months before finally being found a council house, and upon his release Ranga started running a pub in Grinstead, East Sussex, before suddenly dying of a heart attack.

Earlier this year Romesh detailed his relationship with his father in an interview with The Guardian.

He said: ‘I did hero-worship my dad. My mum was dealing with what my dad was being like and two kids who thought she was making a big deal about nothing. But it turns out she wasn’t making a big enough deal about it.’

Woes: Romesh’s family had already faced a turbulent time, as his father Ranga left their mother Shanthia when the comic was just 12

In recent months Romesh has been busier than ever, and this Christmas he is starring in a Sky festive special alongside Rob Beckett, where the pair join the cast of Disney On Ice.

The comic was previously a maths teacher and head of sixth form at Hazelwick school in Crawley, where he had also been a pupil.

It was there he met his wife Leesa, a fellow teacher, who he has hailed ‘the most laid-back person’.

He previously told the Guardian that his wife was ‘really chilled’ when he missed the birth of the couple’s third child.

Leesa was admitted to the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary during The Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2014 where Romesh was appearing to perform stand-up, and gave birth to their son Charlie.

Open: In a previous interview, Romesh admitted he did ‘hero-worship’ his late father, even though he was jailed for fraud

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