Mumbai: Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan has confirmed that he’s the father of a new baby amid feverish media speculation.
Talking to reporters at the music launch of his newest film, Chennai Express, Khan said late on Wednesday that the news was “extremely personal.”
There’s been much speculation in Indian media over the last few weeks that Khan and his wife became parents to a baby boy via a surrogate and that the actor knew the baby’s gender ahead of the birth — an act that is illegal in India to prevent the practice of aborting female fetuses due to a cultural preference for sons.
Khan did not give any details and did not mention the baby’s gender, but said he would share more details when the “sad” speculation settles down.
“There is a mix of sadness and happiness about this news. Let the sad part get over... will talk about it later. I would request the people who are doing the interrogation to do a thorough check,” Khan said.
Indian media is speculating that the baby in question is underweight. The surrogate baby was born several weeks early, on May 27. Mumbai officials confirmed the baby weighed 1.5kgs and was born at 34 weeks of pregnancy.
47-year-old Khan and his wife Gauri have two other children - son Aryan and daughter Suhana.
