Zayn Malik has offered fans a rare glimpse into his family life by sharing a picture of his five-year-old daughter Khai during a wholesome summer together.
The former One Direction star, 33, posted the sweet father-daughter moment as part of his latest Instagram carousel on Thursday. In the image, Malik held Khai's hand while wearing a Balenciaga T-shirt and a backwards baseball cap.
Elsewhere in the social media update, the singer showed off his barbecue cooking skills before flaunting a newly shaved buzzcut.
Malik rose to global fame in 2010 as a member of the British-Irish boy band One Direction, which was formed on the television competition show The X Factor alongside bandmates Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, and Liam Payne. After leaving the group in 2015, Malik launched a successful solo recording career with chart-topping releases.
Gigi Hadid and Bradley Cooper wedding rumors
Malik welcomed Khai in 2020 with his former girlfriend, supermodel Gigi Hadid, before the couple officially called it quits the following year in 2021.
The rare picture of Khai comes as Hadid has sparked rumors that she has secretly tied the knot with her boyfriend, Hollywood actor Bradley Cooper.
Hadid and Cooper, who were first romantically linked in 2023, stepped out together in Paris earlier this month while sporting matching gold bands on their ring fingers.
Reports later emerged suggesting that the couple had secretly married in New York one month before their trip to France.
A source claimed to The Sun: "There was a dinner celebration with Bradley and Gigi in New York last week and there's a lot of talk that it was to do with a wedding."
The insider added: "Now they have been seen out with wedding bands on, it seems like they quietly got married. They make a lovely couple."
Hadid, 29, is an internationally acclaimed American supermodel who has walked for high-fashion brands including Chanel and Versace. Cooper, 49, is an Oscar-nominated American actor and filmmaker known for starring roles in Silver Linings Playbook, A Star Is Born, and The Hangover trilogy.
Tooth fairy confession on Call Her Daddy
Although Malik rarely features Khai on his social media accounts, he previously offered a rare insight into fatherhood during a podcast interview earlier this year.
Speaking on the Call Her Daddy podcast in February, the singer left host Alex Cooper speechless after revealing the extravagant sum of money he gave Khai after she lost her first tooth.
Malik admitted that he handed over £500 as the tooth fairy, which prompted Hadid to tell him off for the high amount.
Defending his decision on the podcast, Malik said: "I'm raising her in an environment that isn't the same as everybody's, her dad is a pop star and her mum is a model and certain things that she does in life might not reflect what other people's understanding of reality is."
He added: "So I think I gave her a bit too much money from the tooth fairy - £500. It's her first tooth and her mum gave me s*** about it but at the end of the day I work my a*** off and I should be able to give my kid what I want to give her."
Podcast host Alex Cooper expressed her disbelief during the episode, exclaiming: "Hold on, I may have to agree with her mum on this. £500 for one tooth! That's so crazy, but also everyone is going to be so jealous right now."
Malik responded: "She's my first kid, give me a break somebody please."
He continued: "People in general look at it a certain way but at the end of the day I was lucky if I got anything for my teeth and I've worked really hard for everything I have earned so I don't feel like I have to answer for them things."
The singer reflected on how his own upbringing influenced his parenting style, adding: "There's definitely a feeling of 'I didn't get to do this so I want you to be able to feel this.' I over compensate a little bit too much for that."
Call Her Daddy is a prominent comedy and interview podcast created and hosted by Alex Cooper, known for candid celebrity discussions and lifestyle commentary.
Khai's aspirations to become a K-pop star
During the same podcast appearance, Malik also spoke about Khai's ambitions for the future, revealing that his young daughter is eager to follow in her parents' entertainment footsteps.
Malik shared his hopes for Khai, stating: "Honestly I just hope that she gets to do in life what she wishes to do and she's happy."
He revealed that Khai has set her sights on the music industry, saying: "She definitely wants to be a K-pop star, she's big into K-pop. I'd like to keep her away from it but at the end of the day if she's happy, I'll support her."
Despite supporting her happiness, Malik expressed a desire to protect her from the pressures of fame, adding: "Me personally I would like to keep her away from some of the headache that this job entails."
Co-parenting arrangement and past romance
Last year, Hadid also shared rare comments regarding her co-parenting relationship with Malik during an interview with Vogue magazine.
Discussing how they manage their busy schedules, Hadid revealed: "Zayn and I do our custody schedules months in advance. That doesn't mean that it doesn't change here and there, but we help each other out and have each other's backs."
The supermodel added that she and her ex-partner entered this phase of their co-parenting partnership with "love, and a feeling of camaraderie."
The couple's six-year relationship came to an end following an altercation between Malik and Hadid's mother, Yolanda Hadid, a former star of reality television show The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
As a result of the incident, Malik received a 360-day probation sentence and was required to complete court-mandated anger management and domestic violence programmes.
Referencing the public scrutiny surrounding their breakup, Hadid told Vogue: "There is the hard part of the world knowing this much, and thinking they know everything. And at the end of the day, we're not interested in giving everyone our whole story."
She concluded: "What we are interested in is raising our daughter together. With so much respect for each other, and not just as co-parents, but what we've been through together."
Vogue is a leading monthly fashion publication established in 1892, widely considered one of the premier magazine titles in global fashion media.
