Bassist Mohini Dey calls AR Rahman a 'father figure'

Popular bass guitarist Mohini Dey has shut down rumours linking her with music maestro AR Rahman, following her recent separation from her ex-husband, Mark Hartsuch.

The rumours gained traction after she announced her split from Hartsuch, also a musician, hours after Rahman shared a statement about parting ways with Saira Banu, his wife of 29 years.

Dey, who has worked extensively with Rahman over the years, addressed the speculation through an Instagram video where she described Rahman as a "father figure" and urged the media to respect her privacy during this difficult time.

"I have a lot of father figures, role models in my life, and I've been really fortunate and grateful to have had them play vital roles in my upbringing. AR happens to be one of them. By AR, I mean AR Rahman. I respect him a lot. He is just like my father," she said in the video.

"He is a little bit younger than my dad. His daughter is exactly my age, I think. We have a lot of respect and love for each other. Anyway, long story short. Please be kind and respect our privacy. It's a personal matter, and it's painful. It's a painful process. So please be kind," Dey added.

Apart from the video, Dey also shared a lengthy note where she expressed her disappointment with the media's portrayal of the situation.

"It is utterly unbelievable to see the amount of misinformation and baseless assumptions/claims against me & @arrahman. It feels criminal that the media has vulgarised the two events. I honour my times as a kid working with @arrahman throughout my 8.5 years of working with him for his movies, tours, etc. It's disheartening to see that people have no respect, sympathy or empathy towards emotional matters like this," read a part of her note.

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