Love Island winner Sanam Harrinanan accuses show’s producers of dumbing down the contestants

Love Island winner Sanam Harrinanan has accused the show’s producers of dumbing down contestants by stopping their “deeper” exchanges.

The reality star, 25, who won the winter series with boyfriend Kai Fagan in March, told MailOnline that she believes bosses should broadcast more of the meaningful conversations that take place when the islanders are dating, because they happen but don’t air.

Stars of the show are instead seen breaking out phrases from previous series, including “my type on paper” and “may I invite you for a chat?” while Sanam says couples connect on a deeper level and she would talk to Kai about their families, future together and core values.

Sanam, a social worker from Bedford, fell in love with teacher Kai, 25, after meeting on the ITV2 show and insists the couple are in it for the ‘long term’ and she’s been on ‘cloud nine’ since she won the match.

She said, “It shocked me because when I went on the show I didn’t think I was going to connect with anyone on such a personal level. I didn’t expect to go on Love Island and actually find love.

“When you watch Love Island, you don’t see those conversations very often, so you don’t think it’s happening. But with me and Kai we talked about our families, our values, future, we connected on a deeper level that I didn’t think would happen in the villa.

‘They should actually show that more. We are a really good match because we come into contact with each other on so many different levels.’

Sanam and Kai became the first non-white couple to win the show in Love Island’s ten-year run after connecting during the Casa Amor loyalty test.

They also made history by Sanam being the only Casa Amor bombshell to go all the way in the competition after viewers fell in love with the couple’s story as they saw their romance was real.

And their relationship has blossomed since moving out of the villa, with Sanam saying the pair are in no rush to move in together, but it already feels like they do because of the amount of time they spend in each other’s company.

She said, “Me and Kai are doing really, really well. We’ve been in touch a lot more since the show because we spend more time with each other’s families. Even though we don’t live together, it feels like we do.

“We’ve been doing our own thing, exploring new areas, going on dates, it’s going so well. I feel like I’m over the moon because I can’t believe this is my life now.

“We are waiting to officially start living together. It’s something we definitely want to do, but it’s finding the right place and the right location. It’s still a bit chilly because we don’t know where we are, we’re still getting used to this new lifestyle.

“We don’t want to jump ahead… we want to enjoy our relationship while not having a camera watching us all the time, but we’re both in it for the long haul.”

Sanam’s series marked the first Love Island season where bosses enforce a social media ban on contestants’ Instagram profiles and instead “sleep” instead of being groomed by a friend or family member.

They made the change to limit the level of trolls received in response to events on the show, but as a result, islanders who usually run away from the show’s publicity gathered millions of followers, in Sanam’s case only garnered 422,000.

But the winner insists she doesn’t care how many followers she has because she went to the show for love, not clothing deals, and hopes to inspire her younger audience.

She said, “I’d get it if I went on the show for fame then it would really bother me, but I did it for the experience and I was hoping I could find someone.

“Followers don’t bother me because I do things I really care about. If I were to go on the show for deals and contracts I can see how someone would be affected because obviously that will affect what you can get, but I’m doing campaigns that I care about. I do things that I want to do anyway.

“I want to make sure I get it right with my platform because I have a lot of younger followers and I want to make sure I’m giving them something meaningful rather than just posting what I’m wearing today because that’s not going to change them. lives. I want to be a role model for the younger generation.’

Sanam has teamed up with a charity called You Can Adopt to encourage and educate potential adopters about the support they can get and to emphasize that they are not alone, especially when adopting a child with special needs.

The social worker, who specializes in post-adoption support, explained that more than half of children looking for their forever home are of black or ethnic background or have additional needs, which often deters adopters, who are not always be aware of available resources.

But the star says there are countless ways parents can be supported through the process, and she hopes raising awareness through You Can Adopt will inspire more people to help children find safe and loving homes.

She said, “There is support for perspective adopters considering adoption, but I also want to point out the number of children who are waiting the longest to be adopted. Some of these kids don’t even qualify.

“The children who typically wait the longest to be adopted tend to be children with disabilities, special needs, black children, or children from ethnic minorities.

“Statistics show they can wait up to eight months longer to be adopted and those children make up about 59 percent of the total number of children waiting for adoption, which is more than half.

“The aim of the campaign is to reassure and encourage perspective adopters not to worry about adopting a child with additional needs, there is support there and you are not alone. There’s a huge team around adoption in general that’s there to help you.”

Sanam says adopting a child and providing them with a home where they can thrive will be fundamental to their adult life and often those who don’t grow up in a safe space struggle with identity issues later on.

She added: “I’ve learned that a lot of people suffer from their identity and who they are and it’s because they moved from place to place as they grew up. If we can do everything we can, we can prevent them from affecting a child later in life. There are so many resources available to help a child stay in one home for as long as possible.’

The former islander has considered adopting a child of her own and says it’s something she’s longed for since she was young.

“Working in the field, yes, it was quite a tough review process, but you’re doing something that’s so good for a kid that you can’t beat it,” Sanam said.

“It’s a challenge, but every child needs a home, every child needs a parent and a place where they can grow and thrive. It’s definitely on my mind and if I could ever do it I would.

“I’ve always had a passion for adoption and loved the idea of ​​helping a child find their forever home and bringing people together.”

• You Can Adopt has launched a new campaign to find resilient parents for the children who are waiting the longest for a permanent home, and to show what support is available to them. For more information, visit youcanadopt.co.uk