Shobna Gulati is famed for her portrayal of Sunita Alahan in ITV's Coronation Street, having starred in the soap from 2001 to 2013. The star initially shot to fame with the BBC's Dinnerladies, had stints in EastEnders and Doctors, and was briefly a panellist on Loose Women.
Fans might also know the versatile actress, 58, from her role as Ray in the hit West End musical Everybody's Talking About Jamie, as well as playing Mari Hoff in the 2022 UK Tour of The Rise and Fall of Little Voice, acting alongside her 30-year-old son Akshay.
Despite a bustling career since leaving the cobbles of Coronation Street, Shobna hasn't shied away from discussing the more challenging aspects of fame. She has opened up about the severe depression she experienced, which required the assistance of two counsellors. Shobna confessed, "Corrie fame made me a recluse. When I handed in my resignation, I knew it was the right thing.".
Moreover, she disclosed: "When you're in a dark place, there only appears to be one way out. You try not to consider that. I've always tried not to reach that low. But when a bout of depression hit me, I could lock myself away for a week. Lived like a hermit.".
However, in a 2020 interview with OK!, she confessed it was a "shame" that her soap character met an untimely demise. She shared: "What a shame they killed Sunita off. The first time I left, the door was open for her to come back, but you get different producers with different ideas. I'm still in touch with some of the women there, and one of my best friends is Kate Ford [Tracy Barlow]. We're very close.".
