Salman Rushdie and Padma Lakshmi. Photo Credit: AFP / Splash NewsLondon, July 3 (ANI): The three-year marriage of controversial author Salman Rushdie and his model wife Padma Lakshmi has reportedly ended.
And according to friends, close associates of the author and his fourth wife had already forecast divorce long back because of their differing personalities.
A close friend has revealed that the "Satanic Verses" author was totally “self-centered” and self-obsessed, while the 36-year-old former model was “incredibly dull.”
"He's totally self-centered. If you asked him about Wimbledon, 20 minutes later he would still be talking about himself,” The Sun quoted the friend, as saying.
“My impression of her is that she's very photogenic, but in the flesh, she's not sexy. She's incredibly dull. I have no idea how they existed on a day-to-day basis,” the friend said.
The friend also divulged that Rushdie was 'still very much in love' with Lakshmi, the host of Bravo's "Top Chef," but his feelings were no longer reciprocated.
"She doesn't want to have anything to do with him. Divorce proceedings are either in train or about to be. A feature of their marriage was that months would go by without them seeing each other,” the friend said.
According to reports, Sir Salman agreed to the split after Lakshmi, who is 24 years his junior, wanted an end to the marriage.
"Salman Rushdie has agreed to divorce his wife, Padma Lakshmi, because of her desire to end their marriage. He asks that the media respect his privacy at this difficult time,” the couple’s rep said in a statement.
News of the Rushdie-Lakshmi divorce comes just two weeks after the announcement of his knighthood caused uproar across the Muslim world.
The 60-year-old "Satanic Verses" author and the 36-year-old former model were married in 2004 in New York City. (ANI)