There’s a sinister pattern of abuse in this extended clan.
This article contains descriptions of domestic abuse, including coercive control, that some readers may find upsetting.
Priya Nandra-Hart (Sophie Khan Levy) revealed a huge secret about her absence from son Davinder ‘Nugget’ Gulati’s (Juhaim Rasul Choudhury) life in tonight’s EastEnders (18th October), as the actions of two abusive men were felt all round.
After Suki Panesar (Balvinder Sopal) was physically and psychologically abused into covering for killer Ravi Gulati (Aaron Thiara) by his father, her husband Nish (Navin Chowdhry), Suki claimed she felt sick and went to lie down.
At the same time, Ravi was dealing with a bombshell, after Priya revealed he had fathered her 14-year-old daughter Avani (Aaliyah James). Avani showed off her cheeky attitude as she surveyed her long-lost family, casually asking brother Nugget if Nish was their real grandad or the one Ravi had murdered!
Ravi demanded answers from Priya in private. Priya was adamant that Avani was Ravi’s, but when he raged over her disappearance from Nugget’s life, she unveiled another home truth.
It turned out that Ravi’s late adoptive father, Ranveer (Anil Goutam), had told Priya she was worthless, then tried to assault her and paid her off to leave her family! Discovering she was pregnant, Priya couldn’t return for fear of losing another baby to Ranveer’s clutches.
Ravi was horrified, and genuinely apologetic as he insisted that he would have stood up to Ranveer in order to keep Priya and their daughter around if he’d known.
But when she branded Ravi a “low life” he soon turned nasty again, tearing Priya down and suggesting Nugget would have been worse off with her in his life. Priya sobbed and rushed out, ending up in a passionate encounter with Peter Beale (Thomas Law).
Nish, Ravi and Nugget bonded with Avani, who had Ravi all figured out as she urged him to make amends with her mum. But when Priya returned, she told Ravi that she and their children didn’t need him, before taking Avani away.
Meanwhile, Suki had ventured out for some fresh air. Broken down by Nish’s toxic behaviour and feeling trapped, Suki sobbed alone in the closed Minute Mart, where she found that more of her hair was falling out. Can Suki and Priya break this cycle of vile abuse that has derailed their lives?
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can visit Refuge for more information and contact 0808 2000 247 for support. Help can also be found at The Hideout.
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