FIVE duet albums, countless love songs together - looks like it has all gone to waste.

Indonesian pop diva Kris Dayanti and singer-producer husband Anang Hermansyah ended their 13-year marriage four days before the start of the fasting month of Ramadan.

He pronounced a 'talak tiga' divorce, which, in Muslim law, is irrevocable.

There has been speculation that he was unhappy about her alleged wild ways, resistance to having more children, or even a secret lover.

When approached at her Jakarta home by the Indonesian press, Kris - also known as KD - would say only that Anang wanted the divorce.

The 36-year-old singer told Indonesian magazine Tempo: 'We jointly agreed to end our marriage this year. We also agreed that we would not blame each other or bring up the past or each others' faults.'

But their silence has been of no use. The biggest shock came earlier this week when their children, son Azriel, 9, and daughter, Titania Aurelie, 11, told Indonesian channel SCTV that they had seen their mother with another man while on holiday in Bali.

The third party is suspected to be a rich, married East Timorese businessman, Rahul Lemos.

Gossip blog Oktavita.com quoted his wife as saying she knew of a friendship between her husband and KD.

'He has denied that they have a special relationship. But if they do, I honestly will not allow it,' she said.

The divorce coincided with KD's return from a trip to East Timor, where she performed for the 10th anniversary of the country's vote to secede from Indonesia.

Startling confessions

Asked why the singer had agreed to perform there, manager and good friend Elsie Lontoh told SCTV that KD is a singer who 'may perform at whatever events she is asked to'.

News of a third party isn't exactly surprising. The marriage has long been threatened, going by earlier reports.

Anang, 41, has long been known as the more religious of the two - he studied in a pesantren (madrasah) for 13 years.

KD, who married when she was just 23, has long credited her husband for guiding her in her religious faith.

It was rumoured, too, that she recently started wearing less revealing clothes because of him.

But did the diva feel like she was being reined in too much?

In 2005, the ex-wife of former Indonesian President Suharto's grandson Ari Sigit claimed to the media that KD's daughter was not Anang's, but his.

Though the claim long went unaddressed by the couple or any of their family members, KD recently told online news portal Detikcom that the girl 'is definitely Anang's daughter'.

'We have never argued over this or been doubtful about it,' she said.

The couple also reportedly argued over having more children.

In a Wanita Indonesia report in 2006, KD was reported as saying Anang had been pushing her to have a third child. She was reluctant, however, because she'd felt traumatised by her previous pregnancies.

'Imagine, every time I got pregnant, my weight went up by 30kg. After that, I had to try very hard to get back in shape,' she said.

She echoed these sentiments in her second biography, Kris Dayanti: My Life, My Secret, where she finally admitted to having liposuction and tummy tucks after her second pregnancy.

The book also included the startling confession that the couple were on the brink of divorce years ago, when she shouted at Anang in front of his mother.

Published just a month before the divorce, it also tells of how she took drugs after her daughter was born.

She blamed it on her busy career. She claimed to work 'almost 24-hour days' performing on stage and acting in TV dramas.

Her husband knew only when he caught her taking drugs in her bedroom.

He then took her to an ulama (religious man) in East Java to heal her.

But the last straw is believed to have been a third party, whom KD apparently introduced to her children on holiday.

Candid interview

In a strangely candid interview with Indonesian channel SCTV, KD's children said they saw their mother being friendly with another man while vacationing with them in Bali, without dad Anang.

Titania Aurelie, also known as Aurel, told SCTV: 'When we were in Bali, she was on the phone every day. We're not sure, but maybe she was talking to her lover.

'While we went swimming, she invited the man into her room.'

She added: 'Mimi (mummy) has lied to Pipi (daddy). I am very angry with mummy and her friends. I hope she will realise her mistake soon.'

The children are now living with Anang.

When interviewed by Indonesian magazine Gatra on the set of a music video on Wednesday, Anang wished his ex-wife the best of luck with her new partner.

'Hopefully they will better respect and love each other,' he said.

KD told Indonesian magazine Kompas that it was Anang's decision that the children should live with him while the divorce is being settled.

However, rumour has been rife that the children refuse to see her.

She told Kompas: 'I've lost Aurel (her daughter), not only in flesh, but her heart and her soul. I am not with her but I constantly pray for her.'

It was 'love at first sight'

HE HAS said the love songs he writes are about her.

Now that the love story between Indonesia's long-reigning pop royalty couple is over, what will Anang Hermansyah do?

Kris Dayanti and Anang met in a recording studio in the mid-90s. She fell for his 'sexy voice' and boldly went up to give him a kiss.

It was, as she said then, 'love at first sight'.

They married in 1996. She was 23, and he, 28.

KD told The New Paper in 2000: 'Yes, we married young. The important thing is we love each other very much and that has kept us growing together. We see eye-to-eye in many ways.'

She would often gush about him. If they were interviewed together, they would break out into one of their many duets, their favourite being Cinta (Love), her breakout hit. He, too, was vocal about his feelings - when he won Best Male Artiste at 2003's Anugerah Planet Muzik, he said in his acceptance speech that she was his 'trophy'.

He has also guided her faith. When the pair went on their umrah (minor pilgrimage) in 2003, KD told Indonesian gossip magazine Star Nova that Anang 'wants to make sure his wife goes to heaven. I was so moved when he told me that.'

They have recorded five duet albums. Their last, The First 10 Years, was released three years ago, to celebrate their 10th anniversary.

At the album's launch in Kuala Lumpur, KD told Utusan Malaysia: 'In these 10 years with Anang, I've learnt so much from him. He has always guided me on the right path. He makes me happy.'

Anang said: 'For me, trust and honesty are very important to foster love in a marriage.'

In the album's liner notes, KD wrote: 'Let's accept, with sincerity, the person God ordained us to be with.'

Unfortunately for Anang, it wasn't him.

This article was first published in The New Paper.