Dr Ranj Singh's ex-wife breaks silence on their 'messy and painful divorce'
Dr Ranj Singh and Sulvinder Samra called time on their seven-year marriage in 2011 after he came out as gay and told her he wanted to leave their relationship to start romances with men.
Dr Ranj Singh's ex-wife felt "dead inside" following their "messy and painful divorce".
Sulvinder Samra and the 46-year-old TV doctor ended their seven-year marriage in 2011 after he came out as gay and told her he wanted to leave their relationship to start romances with men.
And Dr Ranj's former spouse spent years battling thoughts of being "unattractive, ashamed, and not good enough" and the past "dictating" her life before she reclaimed her "power".
Sulvinder reflected on her healing journey by posting an emotional photo montage of her life on Instagram on Thursday (28.05.26) - what would have been the pair's 20th wedding anniversary.
She said: "I never wanted these words to be my story. Today would have been my 20th wedding anniversary.
"I thought my life would go as planned... Work hard. Get a degree. Get a job. Find a partner. Get married. Have kids. Instead, I had a messy and painful divorce."
In the post's caption, Sulvinder - who met Dr Ranj in 2003, and dated for a year before they got engaged - said married life "was not easy" before "the cracks started to show".
She added: "What I will say is there is not a lonelier feeling than feeling alone in a marriage."
Sulvinder "mourned" and called it "heavy because the future I thought I had was gone, and the person that I thought I had married was gone as well".
Although Sulvinder "tried to embrace my new life", she was "carrying beliefs from a failed marriage", which made her "not trust anyone", including herself.
Sulvinder continued in the photo montage: "I believed I wouldn't be a good mum, I'm not good at relationships, I did not deserve any happiness.
"I carried it in my heart. I tried hard to push the feelings away. Numbing the pain anyway I could. On the outside, I was pretending. I looked fine. But I felt dead inside. Because I'm not good enough.
"I felt my past was out of my control. The feelings I tried to suppress would resurface. It took a long time to see the pattern. Looking externally for validation."
She gave up hopes of becoming a mom because of her not being able to find a partner.
Sulvinder said: "I accepted that I would only be an aunt. That having children was not my future."
It was "three years ago" that Sulvinder realised her life needed to be turned around.
She added: "It all became too much. I could not keep pushing the feelings away. I had a choice to make... I started to work on myself every day. Actually doing the hard stuff. And that's when everything started to change."
So Sulvinder "took a leap of faith" and quit her job as a pharmacist, adding: "I decided to make better choices. Hard to believe I am enough."
But after retraining as a nervous system coach, Sulvinder's "world was shaken to my core" with another heartbreak.
She said: "My beautiful sister was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer."
Sulvinder explained: "She became my priority. And I witnessed true bravery. Love shows up in different forms. Family is my everything."
She ended her photo montage by telling people not to "let the past dictate your future" and that they are in control of their own lives.
Days earlier, Dr Ranj reflected on coming out to a pal when he was "around 30" and his and Sulvinder's breakup in the latest edition of The Big Issue magazine.
The Strictly Come Dancing 2018 star said: "I was married, and obviously that relationship broke down, and then it was dealing with everybody else, friends and family.
" It happened when I’d got to where I thought I was supposed to be. I had the career I’d always wanted, I always wanted a home of my own. I’d ticked all my boxes. So the big question was, why am I still not 100 per cent happy? Why does it still feel like something’s not right?"
He added: "This perfect life that you’ve imagined and hoped for, and dreamt of and worked towards, isn’t your perfect life."
Dr Ranj - who was supported by family and friends after he and Sulvinder divorced - admitted therapy made him reevaluate what he wants in life.
He said: "Therapy made me think, hang on, you’ve got to be honest with yourself now, and you’ve got to think about what it is that you want. And that’s when I thought, I’m not the person I thought I should be, or I thought I was going to be."
Dr Ranj has been in a relationship with actor-and-presenter James Colebrook since 2024.
