Junaid Ahmed was disowned by his parents aged just 18.
The 27-year-old star of The Only Way is Essex joined the cast of the long-running reality series in the summer of 2022 and although he claimed that he couldn’t imagine life without the reality series, it wasn’t always plain sailing for the star.
The former Lovestruck High reality star sat down for a new interview on the Secure the Insecure podcast where he opened up on his tough teenage years.
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Speaking to the podcast host Johnny Seifert, the former Amazon Prime star spoke about his old childhood romances and revealed new details about his first love.
(Image: REX/Shutterstock)
He told the talkRADIO presenter: “I did start seeing someone when I was 16. Secretly, he was one of my best friends at the time. And it was all a little secret. I just loved it. I absolutely loved it. I was in love. That was my first love.”
The former model continued: “We’re both in the same boat. Like he was in the closet. I was essentially in the closet. And we just yeah, we just we’ve known each other all our life anyway. So it was just the most comfortable thing.”
He added: “And I know [it could] never be something serious because he would never come out”.
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The interview took a more emotional turn as the two-time reality star revealed how his family reacted when he revealed his sexuality to them, but the reaction led to the star having to move out of the house as a result.
He explained: “I absolutely do love my religion, I’ve been brought up a Muslim and that will stay with me for the rest of my life … Homosexuality is not accepted in Islam. And that is in black and white.”
Junaid continued: “I told them. And it was something that they couldn’t accept due to the community and the culture. And I was then kicked out and I moved. Six bin bags later I was in Essex.”
(Image: Getty Images)
He later reflected on the relationship with his parents and although he understands the differences, he wishes he could have a relationship with them, especially as he is living out his dream on reality TV.
He explained: “I think they still love me, but just can’t accept what I do for a living and why and who I am. So the love’s not there. You know, when you’ve had a heart like just in general life, like when you just want that hug from your mom, I want that every day, but I can’t have it.”
He added: “You don’t think I want to be able to go home and just sit down and sit with my mom and have a conversation teller? My dreams have come true recently. There’s so much I’ve wanted to do in my life that I’m now doing.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
