Rishi Sunak reveals he proposed to Akshata Murty in Kannada as he married into a 'Bangalore family'
Ex-British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has revealed that he proposed to his wife, Akshata Murty, daughter of Infosys founder Narayana Murthy and author Sudha Murty, in Kannada. He added that he married into a Bengaluru family and embraced Kannada culture, even supporting the IPL team Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).
In a conversation with the Times of India, the leader of Indian origin said that he chose to propose to his wife, Akshata Murty, in her mother tongue, even though he had not quite mastered the language at the time.
The couple met at Stanford, married in 2009 at a small ceremony in Bengaluru. They have two daughters, Krishna and Anoushka.
"I'm married into a Bangalore family, so RCB is my team," he said, adding that his in-laws gifted him an RCB jersey when he got married and he's followed the team closely ever since. "We went to matches a long time ago and I used to cheer them on in Downing Street," he shared.
Like most RCB fans, the former UK PM also said that Virat Kohli was his favourite player and a "total legend". He revealed that one of his "prized possessions" was a bat signed by the ace cricketer abd gifted to him by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during his tenure.
"I'm also hoping for a big contribution from RCB's English contingent, Phil Salt, Liam Livingstone - let's bring it home," he said as he declared his plans to support RCB against Punjab Kings in the IPL 2025 Final today.
Beyond his personal fandom, Sunak spoke about cricket's role in diplomacy, saying it often helped break the ice with fellow world leaders. He recalled having spirited cricket banter with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, especially during the Ashes series, which occasionally became intense but remained friendly. He also mentioned that with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, cricket often served as a light-hearted prelude to their official discussions.
(Also read: Rishi Sunak declares open support for RCB: 'I'm married into a Bangalore family)
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