Michelle Ntalami opens up on how father’s death and heartbreak changed her love life
By Valerian Khakayi, February 1, 2026Kenyan entrepreneur and social media personality Michelle Ntalami has opened up about how the loss of her father and a subsequent breakup profoundly affected her approach to love and relationships.
Speaking during an interview with Lady Bishop Kathy Kiuna, in an episode aired on Sunday, February 1, 2026, Ntalami said her father’s death left her feeling emotionally shut down, particularly towards life and men.
She also revealed that years later, after her father’s death, a relationship she thought would end in marriage also broke, leaving her to deal with the pain of losing two wonderful men in her life.
“His death made me shut down towards life and even men,” Ntalami disclosed.
“A few years later, after my dad’s death, I also had a relationship that I felt would be it for me, and unfortunately, it did not work out; that relationship also broke and threw me deeper, having lost two wonderful men in my life, and I did not want to deal with that pain.”
The Marini founder clarified that her breakup was not due to infidelity or betrayal.
In addition, Ntalami went on to say that during that period, she thought about forgetting about men because of the profound loss of two pivotal men in her life, her father, who was her pillar, and her former lover.
“I was thinking, ‘Forget men,’ you know, not because anyone has broken my heart in terms of infidelity or anything, but the heartbreak of losing the man in my life, my dad, the pillar, and then losing my then lover, it was not an ugly breakup; it was a dealbreaker, but not infidelity,” she added.
Dating after loss
Additionally, Ntalami narrated how every time she was approached by a man, she would subconsciously look for the qualities of her father or her former partner.
She noted that she eventually realised she needed to take time to heal and step back from dating.
“Every time I was approached by a man, I would be looking for these two men in that guy, and then I just felt like I needed to heal,” Ntalami stated.
“Every time I was trying to date, I was just looking for qualities of my dad or this former person, and at some point, I was like, ‘I am not doing this thing.'”
Coping with the pain
To cope, Ntalami decided to step back from dating and focus on her career.
“So I decided to stay by myself in terms of dating, just to have a break from dating and plunge myself into work, and whenever somebody would ask me ‘Tell me about your dad,’ I would cry,” Ntalami revealed.
Despite the emotional toll, Ntalami says, she did not seek professional therapy for her grief, instead relying on her career and self-reflection to navigate her pain.
“I knew I was fully broken and grieving and went full-blown into a career,” she added.
“I did not do therapy for grief.”