Romesh Ranganathan has revealed that his three sons have been subjected to racist abuse at school, including one being called the P-word while walking around the grounds.
The comedian and presenter, 48, said Alex, 16, Theo, 14, and Charlie, 11, had experienced fewer incidents than he did growing up in West Sussex, but that racist comments had still been directed at them.
Speaking to his Wolf and Owl podcast co-host Tom Davis, Ranganathan described one incident involving one of his sons and a girl at school.
He said another pupil told the boy: “I don’t know why you’re bothering to chat to her. You’re going to end up marrying your cousin.”
Ranganathan added: “Alex has had the P-word said to him, when he’s been walking around school.”
The television star said such language often made him question what children were hearing at home, suggesting parents had to take responsibility for attitudes passed on to their children.
“At a certain point you’ve got to go, ‘They’re obviously hearing that at home’,” he said. “So whenever I see that or I hear that a kid’s done it, the next time I see their parents I’m thinking, ‘You’re racist’, right? And that’s a horrible thing.”
Although he condemned racism as “horrible and abhorrent”, Ranganathan said he did not want his sons to respond to racial abuse with violence.
“If somebody calls you a racial slur and it immediately ignites you, it gives that person power over you,” he said. “I’m not saying you shouldn’t react to racism, but I’m saying that immediately leading you to be violent is not something I want my kids to do.”
Romesh Ranganathan recalls racist abuse
Ranganathan also recalled being targeted during his own childhood, saying he had “slurs thrown at me a fair bit”.
He said one boy known for being racist spat at him as he was leaving school. Later, while at university, he said he was attacked by skinheads as he left a nightclub.
Ranganathan was born to Sri Lankan Tamil parents and was raised in Crawley, West Sussex. He now lives in the area with his wife Leesa, a drama teacher, and their three sons.
The comedian has previously spoken about his difficult upbringing, including a period when the family lived in bed-and-breakfast accommodation after their home was repossessed and his father was jailed for fraud.
Before entering comedy, Ranganathan worked as a maths teacher, where he met Leesa. He went on to become a stand-up comedian and television presenter, hosting programmes including The Weakest Link and appearing on A League Of Their Own.
