M’sia singer Bella Astillah presents award to woman who allegedly had affair with her S’porean ex-husband

A tense exchange occured on stage at Malaysia's Melodi Hottest Awards 2025 on Aug. 3, as Malaysian singer-actress Bella Astillah was forced to present an award to her former romantic rival on stage.

The recipient, Malaysian actress Sophia Albarakbah, was previously rumoured to be romantically linked to Bella's ex-husband, Singaporean actor Aliff Aziz, which seemingly contributed to the couple's break-up.

Malaysian media broadcaster TV3 and television channel Melodi, both organisers of the event, later faced backlash for what netizens deemed an insensitive arrangement.

"I know this one very well"

At the livestreamed entertainment award show held in Putrajaya on Sunday, Bella was on stage to present the award for Hottest Female Celebrity alongside Muar Member of Parliament Syed Saddiq bin Syed Abdul Rahman, to whom she is reportedly currently romantically involved.

According to recordings of the presentation, there was a moment's pause as Bella awkwardly chuckled after opening the result envelope.

She commented in Malay, "This one... I know this one very well," before announcing Sophia as the winner.

She later indifferently handed the award to Sophia without making eye contact, and turned to walk away.

In 2023, Sophia was publicly called out by Bella for allegedly attempting to wreck the latter's marriage with Aliff, by calling and texting Aliff up to eight times a day.

A confrontation between both women over text also led to Sophia supposedly admitting that she had "accidentally fallen for" Aliff.

The couple later divorced in 2024—the second time they had done so—after Aliff was again caught in an affair with another Malaysian actress.

Insensitive moment

The tension on stage was not lost on netizens, who flooded Melodi's Instagram posts with comments accusing them of lacking sensitivity in arranging the award presentations.

"Shame on you [Melodi]! Please make an open apology to Bella for not taking care of her sensitivity," one user commented.

"Please don't use people's pain and trauma as a stepping stone to increase ratings. So rude and insensitive," another added.

Bella was also reportedly absent from a scheduled interview after the event, further fuelling beliefs that the incident had affected her negatively.

Sophia later commented on the incident, claiming that she did not feel mocked by Bella, according to New Straits Times.

Bella's assistant, on the other hand, stated on social media, "That was not Bella's [usual] way of handing an award but perhaps it happened that way because the person gave her trauma."

"Only her closest friends know what she did to Bella back then," the assistant added, as quoted by media outlets.

Top image via Youtube