British makeup artist Sunetra Sastry has contributed to the illustrious comedy series “Black Adder.” She was the ex-wife of actor and comedian Rowan Atkinson. Sastry, who was born in England in the 1960s to an Indian father and an English mother, experienced societal racism as a child. Furthermore, because she wed Sunetra’s father, her mother was shunned by her own family. She made the decision to enroll in a beauty college in London after completing high school. Her parents initially opposed this and preferred that she pursue a career as a nurse. They quickly realized that it was her actual love, though, and they began to help her. She started working for BBC as a makeup artist in the early 1980s. She wed Atkinson in 1990 after they first met in the 1980s. Together, they are parents to a son and a daughter. A relationship between Atkinson and the actress Louise Ford started in 2014. Following their separation, Sastry and he divorced in November 2015.
Young Adulthood & Childhood
Sastry was born in England in 1957 to a British mother and an Indian father. Her mother was raised in a wealthy English family, but after she wed Sunetra’s father, her family forbade her from living with them. Later, Sastry tried to ask her mother about it, but she only responded by saying that it was worthwhile.
Due to her father’s background, Sastry experienced some bigotry while growing up in England in the 1960s. Despite the civil movements that were taking place at the time all around the world, the reality on the ground had not yet altered.
She graduated from high school and enrolled in a beauty school. Her parents first disagreed with her choice, but they soon came around after witnessing her enthusiasm for it.
Atkinson’s Brief Career & Marriage
She started a career as a make-up artist in London after completing her education. She was engaged by BBC sometime in the early 1980s and later began working as a crew member on “Black Adder,” the BBC1 pseudo-historical situational comedy.
Sastry initially performed Stephen Fry’s makeup; he later admitted that she was one of the few women he had been drawn to. In his 2010 autobiography, “The Fry Chronicles: An Autobiography,” the openly gay actor said that he wanted to ask Sastry out, describing her as “intelligent, humorous, and as captivatingly alluring as any girl I had encountered for years.”
But one day Atkinson came up to him and asked if he would trade makeup artists with him. Fry initially believed that Atkinson might not be content with the relationship he was already in, but he soon realized that Atkinson actually wanted to ask her out on a date.
After dating for three years beginning in 1986, Sastry and Atkinson got engaged in late 1989. At New York City’s renowned Russian Tea Room, they were wed in February 1990. Atkinson’s best man was Fry.
In 1993, they had their first child, a male they named Benjamin. Their daughter Lily was born in 1995, two years later. Sastry contributed to the television movie “Smack and Thistle” after working on “Black Adder II”. Later, she made the decision to stop working and devote her time to raising her kids.
Atkinson had a distinguished career as an actor and comedian in radio, television, theater, and films by the time they got married. Sastry supported him from home while he brought to life Mr. Bean, Johnny English, and Enrico Pollini, among other well-known characters.
Sastry and Atkinson’s 24-year union hit a rough patch in 2014 when it was revealed that he had a new woman in his life. The alleged woman turned out to be the actress Louise Ford, it was later discovered. In the West End production of Simon Gray’s play “Quartermaine’s Terms,” which had its world debut at Wyndham’s Theatre in January 2013, Atkinson and Ford had become coworkers. The relationship between them reportedly didn’t start to take shape until a year later.
After Sastry and Atkinson divorced in February 2014, he immediately began an open relationship with Ford. His daughter referred to her father’s activities as “a dick move,” which infuriated her as much as his admirers. Sastry was awarded divorce by the presiding judge during their divorce procedure on November 10, 2015, 65 seconds after it began since Atkinson failed to appear in court.
The judge described his actions as “unreasonable.” Lily Atkinson reportedly decided to stop using her father’s last name and switch to using her mother’s maiden name in October 2017.
Estimated Net Worth
Sunetra Sastry has a net worth of $15 million, the majority of which came from the settlement she received during her divorce from Rowan Atkinson. Some of that was also earned by Sunetra Sastry.