Authors
Sabloo Thomas has worked as a special correspondent with the Deccan Chronicle from 2011 to December 2019. Post-Deccan Chronicle, he freelanced for various websites and worked in the capacity of a translator as well (English to Malayalam and Malayalam to English). He’s also worked with the New Indian Express as a reporter, senior reporter, and principal correspondent. He joined Express in 2001.
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Claim
Photo of Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan in Mecca.
Fact
Photo found to be AI-generated.
A photo, purportedly showing actor Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan in Mecca, is doing the rounds on social media with the claim that Gauri converted to Islam after 33 years of marriage. Newschecker, however, found that the photo was created using generative AI technology.
The archived version of the post can be seen here.
Fact Check/Verification
We did a keyword search to find out whether Gauri Khan converted to Islam. However, we could not find any news reports stating that Gauri had converted to Islam. We found a Times of India report, dated October 8,2024, saying ,”Gauri appeared on Koffee With Karan when she opened up about her religious identity after marriage and said, ‘There is a balance. I respect Shah Rukh’s religion, but that doesn’t mean I would convert and become a Muslim. I don’t believe in that. Everyone is an individual and follows their religion. Of course, there should be mutual respect. Shah Rukh would never disrespect my religion, and I wouldn’t disrespect his’.” A similar report can be seen here.
A News18 report, dated October 8,2024, also states that in a conversation with Karan Johar during Koffee With Karan’s first season, Gauri Khan says that she has immense respect for Shah Rukh Khan’s religion, but she will never convert to Islam. Gauri is Hindu by religion.
We then ran the image past multiple AI-content detection platforms to confirm whether it was created using AI or it shows an actual incident.
TrueMedia found “substantial evidence of manipulation” in the viral image purportedly of Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan in Mecca.
Another AI-image detector Hive Moderation showed a 99.9% likelihood that the image contained AI-generated or deepfake content.
Another tool, Fake Image Detector, too, confirmed that the image was “computer generated or modified”.
Conclusion
The viral photograph showing Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan in Mecca, was found to be AI generated.
Result: Altered Media
Also Read: AI-Generated Video Of Elon Musk Getting A Haircut From A Robot Goes Viral
Sources
News report in Times of India on October 8,2024
News report in News 18 on October 8,2024
TrueMedia Website
Hive Moderation Website
Fake Image Detector tool
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Authors
Sabloo Thomas has worked as a special correspondent with the Deccan Chronicle from 2011 to December 2019. Post-Deccan Chronicle, he freelanced for various websites and worked in the capacity of a translator as well (English to Malayalam and Malayalam to English). He’s also worked with the New Indian Express as a reporter, senior reporter, and principal correspondent. He joined Express in 2001.
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
