Romesh Ranganathan is an English stand-up comedian who has achieved incredible weight loss recently.
Ranganathan, known for ITV’s It’s Not Rocket Science, has won two consecutive BAFTA Awards in 2020 and 2021. Ranganathan’s journey from a school teacher to a BAFTA-winning comedian is indeed an inspiration for posterity.
However, success or struggles in a professional career and personal life are two different aspects of life. Ranganathan garnered name and fame as a comedian but faced a setback in life – weight gain.
A lot of people struggle to lose weight. But Ranganathan successfully fought back and worked hard to acc. He was determined not to stop until he succeeded.
After a successful stand-up tour, The Cynic, with Netflix and now, Ranganathan is all set to start his next tour for 2024, “Hustle.” And this time, the comedian is too fit to be fat-shamed.
Romesh Ranganathan Weight Loss In 2022
2022 marked the year of accomplishment for the comedian Romesh Ranganathan’s weight loss journey.
On 12 September, Ranganathan posted on his Instagram his fat-to-fit photos. He captioned, “Thanks to all that have shown concern regarding my weight loss.” Ranganathan, being the comedian he is, added humorously, “Don’t worry, my mum is still sending me food parcels, we just reduced it to 4 per week.”
He received heartwarming and very supportive comments from his followers. People expressed their unwavering love for the comedian regardless of the situation. One follower, @brenlarge, wrote, “This is great for you and your family. I think you looked good before, but now you’re looking healthy too.”
When did Ranganathan Acknowledge His Weight Gain?
Ranganathan’s father passed away in 2019. After that, he pledged to start working on his weight gain and ill health.
First, it was his appearance that had him concerned. He wrote in the Guardian, “My dissatisfaction with the way I look means I tend to wear one or two more layers of clothing than the season dictates.”
Weight gain is a problem for a low-key person, let alone a celebrity who is in front of the camera most of the time. Things were difficult for Ranganathan as people would mock him every chance they got. He said, “Social media is brutal.”
“I have, of course, tried to lose weight many times and succeeded – only to put it back on. I wanted this to be different, so I resolved to make changes that would be sustainable.”, Ranganathan wrote in the Guardian.
He accepted that it was his greediness that got him to bulk up. He wouldn’t let go of junk food. He once ate four huge, filled doughnuts in one sitting. So the first step for him was to curtail his diet. But that was proving impossible as the comedian couldn’t resist the urge to eat what he wanted.
What Did He Do To Beat Weight Loss?
The road from fat to fit was rough for the comedian, but he pushed himself for three years to lose weight.
Restrained eating didn’t help the comedian. So, he opted for the gym. He hired an ‘Adonis’ trainer, David, to help him with the gym routine. It started every day with 6 am workouts and circuit training. That much commitment and discipline were turning very strenuous for the free-willed comedian.
He canceled the regular session and instead looked for more flexible alternatives. He tried running, boxing, and even going to the gym. But all that on his own, without a trainer to guide him. The process was doomed from the start.
Ranganathan was tired and exhausted but was not ready to give up. He was looking for alternatives and then came across ‘Spin Bike”. It was expensive but had multiple benefits, which got him invested.
The comedian wrote in the Guardian, “I discovered my savior: a spin bike with a screen that lets you do classes online. That doesn’t sound particularly enticing to a sloth, but it was perfect. I could do high-intensity classes, and all I had to do was go downstairs.”
He added, “Spin bike is the one form of exercise that has stuck. It is difficult to find an excuse not to exercise in your own house.”
“Diet was the next thing. I tried to take all of the decision-making out of my hands by having pre-prepared meals delivered. I would eat only three meals a day, plus water, and know exactly what my nutritional intake was”, Ranganathan wrote in the Guardian.
The comedian also tried intermittent fasting. For that, he selected eight hours of the day during which he could eat and fast for the other sixteen hours – sticking to zero-calorie drinks such as water and black coffee. But his tour schedule intervened a lot with his diet plan.
How much weight did he Lose?
Ranganathan lost an incredible amount of weight. All the trouble he went through paid off well in the end.
Now, he looks healthy and ready to take on new challenges. The people who encouraged him the most to lose weight are the comedian’s family.
Ranganathan’s mother, Shanti, has been the inspiration for the comedian to achieve his weight loss. Shanti has mentioned a multitude of times about her son’s weight on TV and in front of a live audience. She wanted her son to be healthy and fit. And she always expressed her concern in a comedic manner. She even ‘fat shamed’ Ranganathan in Alan Carr’s show.
Romesh Ranganathan’s Mother Shanti Ranganathan
Romesh Ranganathan was fat-shamed by his mother on the famous British show Alan Carr: Chatty Man on 23 October 2015.
Ranganathan was invited to the show by Alan. They started the show in a cheerful manner and made toast. The host then shifted the talk to Ranganathan’s mother and her involvement in the “Asian Provocateur.” Alan then calls on Ranganathan’s mother, Shanti, to host the segment he named “Shanti Ranganathan Chatty Mum.”
Shanti steals the show with her charming presence and joyful appearance. She started asking questions, first to Alan and her son. She then asked Romesh about her grandchildren, followed by, “Are you going to lose some weight?
Ranganathan was baffled by the question. He exclaimed, “That’s not on the card.” He pointed she was asking random questions, not preplanned ones. But the crowd sided with Shanti, and Ranganathan reluctantly replied, “I’m gonna try, mum.”
But the fat joke wouldn’t end there. Shanti humorously posed another question, “Have you seen that video of you running? It’s like a bouncy castle.”
During the travel series Asian Provocateur, Ranganathan introduced his mother to the audience. Much to the audience’s delight, she was on par with her famous comedian son in comedy. The comedy and humor run down in the Ranganathan family. Ranganathan’s mother, Shanti, became a star in her own respect.
She enjoyed being involved in the scene with her son and the reaction she was getting from the audience in Crawley, Southwest of London. From there on, she starred on Judge Romesh and the second series of The Ranganation.
Ranganathan and his mother, Shanti, appeared on the cover of Notebook magazine on 5 May 2020. The conversation with the mother and son’s duo was titled “Family, Fame, and Fat Fights.” Ranganathan said, “Mum is obsessed with me getting a belly and going bald.”
Weight can be a difficult issue to digest for people who put on weight. Fat shaming is rampant and can have harsh consequences on people. But Ranganathan has never been too sensitive to jokes about his body, but he was always conscious.
In 2017, Bradley Walsh cracked a joke on the TV show, Play To The Whistle about Ranganathan. He said, ” I remember training once at football, and the punishment was four laps around Romesh.” The audience went loose with the crack. Ranganathan’s reaction to Walsh fat-shaming him on live TV and the crowd unsympathetically cheering result in Ranganathan storming out of the show.
For a moment, the crowd and guests didn’t know what to make of the situation. But then the comedian returned on the stage with his deadpan exclaim, ” I have got nothing else going on in my career, honestly.” It left everyone in a laughter frenzy.
Romesh Ranganathan Wife Leesa Ranganathan
Romesh Ranganathan’s wife, Leesa, is very supportive of him and motivated him to lose weight.
The mother of three children, Lessa, would always bring up her husband’s weight gain in the middle of a conversation. She was worried it would have detrimental consequences on his health. And every time Ranganathan would try to avoid the issue, his wife would turn to her supporters – her children, for support.
Just Another Immigrant is 2018 comedy docuseries that follows Ranganathan, his mother, his supportive wife, and their three children. The series captures the true-life adventures of his immigrant family and the hurdles to keep things straight in the new place.
In episode 3 of Just Another Immigrant, Ranganathan’s wife, Leesa, talked about his weight during bedtime. She recalled the photo shoot earlier that day where her husband’s belly distracted her. Then she suggested he should see a nutritionist. The comedian thought the comment came out of the blue, so he proceeded to ask his children if he needed to lose weight. All three of his children agree unanimously.
In the next scene, Leesa was seen advising her husband to join a gym and start eating healthy foods. The comedian refused to acknowledge that he was in a bad shape. For the moment of truth, Leesa turned to her son, Theo, and asks, “When was the last time you saw daddy do some exercise?” Theo replies, “Last Year”, leaving the comedian speechless.
Ranganathan’s love and appreciation for his beautiful wife are evident as he brings up the topic of his wife in his performances very often. Lessa also made appearances in TV shows with her husband and mother-in-law, Shanti.