Dubai-based dating guru Sadia Khan faces affair accusations

The leading Dubai-based dating guru, Sadia Khan, faces accusations of having an affair with an engaged man, prompting a backlash from followers, International Business Times reported on September 3rd. 

The reputation of her brand, as a personal dating guru, now hangs in the balance, as does her proclamation of being a “high-value woman.”

Khan’s presence online has centred around coaching men, in which she has attempted to boost the confidence of her viewers and guide them towards relationship success. For this guidance, she has asked for generous fees, in which each of her courses purportedly costs more than £6,000 ($8,000).

Allegedly, voice notes as well as texts from 2021, seem to expose her engaging in conduct which goes against her public image. Khan’s actions were reportedly caught by the man’s fiancée. The alleged communication suggests that she has engaged in an affair with a man who is either engaged or perhaps now married. 

The allegations prompt a debate as to how genuine online coaches are, as the industry of online self-help continues to grow. Before her fall from grace, her online image presented her as sensible but courageous and as someone who has sound judgment. 

The public’s response to the allegations was quick and intense. Social media platforms that until not long ago heightened the dissemination of her guidance, became the centre of the public’s criticism and outrage. Her morals and the authenticity of her credentials were consequently questioned by critics and followers. According to her website, her qualifications include a BSc in Psychology as well as a Master’s in Education and Developmental psychology. 

In response to the scandal, one online user said: “How come all these dating coaches are rarely married? The blind leading the blind.”

Khan’s work forms part of a trend of online services which claim to guarantee major personal and romantic milestones for followers.

But whilst the figures behind online services may not always live up to their name, some online figures are still trying to promote a positive cause. The Tiktok star, Sabrina Bahsoon, who is of Lebanese and Malaysian origin, set up a fund in 2024 which intended to educate 14 Palestinian children living as refugees in Malaysia, according to The Rakyat Post via The South China Morning Post. 

Meanwhile, in the Maghreb, some online influencers seem to benefit from their extensive linguistic skills. Moroccan influencer, Hiba, speaks Arabic, English, and French. By 2023, her knowledge of languages led to her accumulating more than 19,000 followers on her Instagram page.

International Business Times, The Rakyat Post via The South China Morning Post, Maghrebi.org, Sadia Khan Psychology