Fake news is a global phenomenon that makes itself most apparent in politics, as a tool against adversaries. Its potency has a direct correlation to the advent of social media in the last few years. But Bollywood has, for decades, been a centre of innuendos and gossip. Mostly, the stars take it in their stride because they, too, have used it for publicity. But sometimes it can be terribly corrosive as Shah Rukh Khan revealed. He had given a Ted Talk in Canada recently and its video has just been released. He speaks there on a number of things, from growing up, personal and social evolution, and humanity in general. But one anecdote stands out about how much gossip can hurt. Shah Rukh said that when his third son AbRam had been born, there were rumours that it was actually the love child of his eldest son Aryan, who was 15 then. There was even a fake video of it. ‘Apparently, he had sown his wild oats with a girl while driving his car in Romania,’ he said. He also joked that his son, on someone saying hello, turns around and says he doesn’t have a European licence even now!