After AR Rahman, his base guitarist Mohini Dey announces separation from husband

On Wednesday, famous Indian composer AR Rahman announced his separation from wife Saira Banu. The lawyer of Saira, Vandana Shah said in a statement that there were emotionally unbridgeable differences between the couple which made them decide to call it quits. Married in 1995, Rahman and Saira have three children: Khatija, Raheema, and Ameen. In related news, AR Rahman’s longtime collaborator and bassist Mohini Dey also confirmed that she was parting ways with her husband.

Dey and her husband Mark also took to social media to announce their split. Poting on Instagram the statement read, “Mark and I have separated with mutual understanding. Our personal relationship has ended but our professional association will continue.” The couple also emphasized that their ongoing work on projects like MaMoGi and the Mohini Dey group will continue. “We will still be working on several projects together,” Mohini confirmed. She asked her fans to give her privacy during these months of personal change and thanked them for their love and support.

Mohini is a well-known and esteemed bassist among the youth who has performed with AR Rahman on more than 40 occasions worldwide. In August 2023, she also made her debut under her own name. She has actually performed on stages alongside other music industry icons including Guthrie Govan, Steve Vai, and Zakir Hussain.

The timing of these announcements, just hours apart, sparked curiosity and speculation on social media. Some users drew provocative connections between the two separations. Curiosity bells ringing, Deepika Narayan Bharadwaj tweeted along with a picture of Rahman and Mohini. X users were quick to jump on the post and draw their own conclusions over the matter.