The Cult Of Taimur Ali Khan: Bollywood's Most Unprecedented Fanbase
He's 11 months old, can't walk, and hasn't said his first words yet...but Kareena and Saif's son already has fan clubs that rival the most hardcore of them.
When you're born to parents who are arguably two of Bollywood's biggest stars, the spotlight's gonna be on you even if you're napping your way through all of it.
But even with ~eugenics~ in mind, Taimur Ali Khan's journey has been unprecedented. The lil' dude became India's biggest news story literally the day after he was born, just because of his first name.
Soon after that story blew over, his first photo leaked (because his tech-oblivious dad set it as his WhatsApp DP).
And let's just say that with each passing photo that's hit the internet since, Taimur has gained a cult following in numbers most adult celebrities would be jealous of.
Like, just a cursory Instagram search for his name throws up fan accounts in the dozens, almost certainly making him the most popular Indian baby in the world.
And these aren't just random inactive accounts, mind you. These are highly detailed journals of Taimur's life (as chronicled by strangers who've never even seen him IRL), with follower counts ranging from a few hundred to a few lakh.
While it's hard to say just what it is (I mean, all babies are supposedly cute, right?), there's something about Taimur that makes everyone collectively go "squeeee" unlike any other.
It doesn't just stop at photos and comments, though. This lad has inspired people to make memes and comics centred around how cute he is.
And there are a lot of those. Like, a LOOOOT.
Sometimes they'll reference his mom's iconic dialogues...
Sometimes they'll be real basic...
And sometimes they'll just make you question the entire fandom. Like, why?
The most frivolous and bizarre of these memes unintentionally paint him as a spoilt kid who throws a lot of tantrums, even though no one has any actual evidence of this.
Once again, I ask – why?
Of course, none of that compares to the barrage of memes dedicated solely to reminding people that no one is allowed to find Taimur not cute.
Every fandom has a few buttons that can prompt them to go a bit extra and, as it turns out, questioning Taimur's darlingness is the biggest no-no in these circles.
Another huge no-no? Accusing his mom of stealing another star kid's birthday theme – like in July, when some stories claimed that Kareena was planning a kids party copied from one that Mira Rajput threw for her daughter.
But those are just a few outliers. Taimur's fanbase is probably the most wholesome Bollywood has ever seen. I mean, even his nanny gets regular shoutouts for looking after him.
And, while there aren't many people who can hope to steal the spotlight away from THE Kareena Kapoor, I guess it makes sense that her own son is doing it without even trying.
It's like many articulate commenters have said, "Guglu Mugulu Gugli Baby".
Or maybe, like all things Bollywood, it just comes down to this:
