The drama between former best friends Tanin Nikpay and Skye Askari is still fresh, and Nikpay says one private phone call sealed the fate of their broken friendship.
In an exclusive joint interview with Page Six’s “Virtual Reali-Tea,” Nikpay and co-star Golnesa “GG” Gharachedaghi spoke about the emotional unraveling viewers saw on Bravo’s “The Valley: Persian Style.”
At the center of the fallout was an eyebrow-raising moment regarding Nippei’s skin care brand “skin by TANIN.” Tensions first escalated when Askari rubbed one of Nikpay’s signature skin oils on Nikpay’s dog. This act was extremely disrespectful to Nikpei. Although initially dismissed as a joke, Nick Paye says Ascari’s actions were much more serious.
At a cast dinner, the situation escalated further when Reza Farahan revealed how upset Nikpay was over the incident, leading to a contentious exchange that revealed a rift in their once-close friendship. Since then, what started as hurt feelings has spiraled into what appears to be an irreparable rift.
Nikpay said she tried to address the issue head-on in a personal phone call with Askari, but things didn’t go as planned.
“The next day I called her and I told her all this and she[didn’t apologize]. She totally ignored me. I said, ‘Did you use oil?'” she said. “No, I’ll probably get acne.” ”
For Nikpay, this controversy was never just about dogs or beauty products.
“This was much deeper than what[it seemed]to be. Listen, I love dogs. I love dogs. I rescue dogs. There’s nothing more important to me than dogs,” she explains.
Gharachedaghi admits that he did not particularly like Askari, but he did not hesitate to support his friend. In fact, she emphasized how central the dog is to Nikpay’s life and marriage to husband Greg Harutunian.
“Her husband can’t even sleep in the bed with the dogs because they love to sleep in the bed,” Gharachedaghi says with a laugh.
Still, Nikpei insists that her injuries were not caused by the act itself, but by the lack of support.
Page Six For the latest on reality TV…
“It wasn’t about the dog, it wasn’t about the oil. It was about the product and everything else. Listen, if I’m saying I want you to just be a cheerleader, take a victory lap and say, ‘I’m so excited,’ and we’ll move on.”
As for whether the reality show accelerated the breakdown in their relationship, Nikpay believes the question was already brewing.
“I think for probably the first two years, we had a really solid friendship. But I think a little bit before this happened, things really started to change. And I think this happened at the right time for the show, but it was all real. I think the cameras amplify your issues, or maybe you see them more clearly,” she shares.
“When you see things now that you would normally ignore, you’re like, ‘Wow. Why did I do that?'”
“The Valley: Persian Style” finished its first season on Bravo this week, but is available to stream on Peacock.
