Mumbai

Bassist Mohini Dey, who is known for performing in Oscar and Grammy-winning music composer AR Rahman's band, has reacted to link-up rumours, which she tagged as “baseless assumptions” and added that the musician is like a “father figure” to her.

Taking to Instagram, Mohini posted a brief clip in which she spoke about how she is the age similar to Rahman's daughter. Mohini also wrote a long note criticising "misinformation and baseless assumptions" against her and Rahman.

In the video, Mohini was heard saying: "I have a lot of father figures and 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.”

“He is actually 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."

She said that she has worked with him in his band as his bassist for eight and a half years.

“Until five years ago I moved to the US and I associated myself with other pop artistes in the US. I have my own band as well and my own music that I tour with.”

Mohini urged everyone to respect their privacy.

“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," she said in the clip.

Mohini captioned it, "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.”

“It saddens me to see people’s state of mind. @arrahman is a legend and he is just like a father to me!"

"I have many role models & father figures in life that have played vital roles in my career and upbringing. To name a few- My dad who taught me everything music (who I lost a year ago) and then @ranjitbarot1 who introduced me to the industry, @louizbanksofficial who shaped me & @arrahman who gave me the freedom to shine in his shows, and his musical arrangements during recording sessions. I cherish and treasure that and will always do!" she added.

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"Media/Paps do not understand the effect it has on people’s minds and lives. Be sensitive. I don't owe anyone any explanations but also, I don't want this to brew and interrupt my day, so Kindly stop with the false claims & Respect our privacy. Love, Mo," she ended her note.