Ex-Mrs South Africa Opens Up on Life Under Public Scrutiny

Verushka Singh made history in November 2025 as the first Indian South African woman crowned Mrs South Africa 2026. Four months later, she stepped away from the title to focus on her family, a decision that weighed the demands of a public role against her private life. Now she is using a television appearance to reflect on how public figures handle scrutiny, vulnerability and the expectations placed upon them.

Singh is a chemical engineer and climate change consultant by profession. That technical background, she suggests, shaped how she approached the transition into public life and, more recently, into television. Her career before the title was built on problem-solving and specialised knowledge, and it carried into how she carries herself in the public eye.

Her latest platform is Celebrity Come Dine With Me South Africa, a dinner-party competition premiering on November 18, 2026 on BBC Lifestyle, DStv channel 174. For audiences, the show offers a view of a public figure outside the formal trappings of a title, focused instead on food, personality and the unpredictable moments that come with hosting under observation.

The programme was already familiar to her. Singh recalled watching it while travelling and staying in hotels, describing it as a comfort show that could make her laugh and bring a sense of home when she was away. “I absolutely, firstly, love the show. Like, one of my favourite shows,” she said.

Taking part, she explained, was a deliberate test of herself. “I just like to also push myself a little bit and try and test different things. And I knew this was way out of my comfort zone,” she said. She arrived with what she describes as a beauty-queen mindset, complete with glamorous designer outfits, but quickly found that plans do not always unfold as intended. “You cannot take yourself too seriously to be on the show,” she said.

That lesson, she notes, reaches beyond appearances. The experience highlighted the vulnerability involved in allowing people to see sides of oneself that are not ordinarily shared. Singh has traditionally valued her privacy and personal space, and public visibility has challenged that instinct, making her more exposed while also encouraging her to be more open. “It’s actually okay to let people in and get to know people because if you don’t do that, you are missing out,” she told IOL.

Food sits at the centre of the format, and Singh brings clear preferences to the table. She enjoys bold flavours, particularly chilli, and has a soft spot for Thai and other Asian cuisines, while exploring ways to make meals healthier without sacrificing taste. Her own favourite dish is crab curry, chosen for its spiciness and the hands-on experience of eating it. Cooking, she says, is a way to slow down. “I think cooking is such a calming experience. You know, you get to just wind down and cook a good meal and put the flavours that you like into it,” she said.

As a host, she wants guests to feel at home and comfortable enough to open up without feeling rushed. She also believes guests carry responsibilities of their own. “I believe an enjoyable dinner party depends on guests being willing to embrace the occasion rather than judging every detail,” she told IOL. People who are overly picky, in her view, can change the atmosphere of a room, and guests should recognise the effort behind hosting and offer some grace.

She admits she is competitive and enjoys winning, but says her approach to the show was not solely about coming out on top. She was equally interested in seeing other people’s homes, their entertaining styles and their personalities.

Away from the cameras, Singh says her family, particularly her son, keeps her grounded, a reminder that public recognition is only one part of life. She believes talents should be treated as gifts, used to help others rather than elevate oneself, and that success should come with responsibility. Her hope, as viewers watch her navigate the show’s unpredictable moments, is a simple one: not to take life, or oneself, too seriously. Whether that openness extends beyond the dinner table, and how she balances visibility with privacy going forward, remains the question her next chapter will have to answer.