AI or not AI? Smriti Irani’s MacBook call with Bill Gates

In what social media users are calling “the crossover nobody asked for,” actor and former minister Smriti Irani was recently seen video-calling Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates – but not on a Windows device. Instead, the moment unfolded on an Apple MacBook, in an upcoming episode of Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2.

Initially, short clips of the video circulating on social media sparked speculation that the conversation was AI-generated. With the internet flooded with AI content across Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and other platforms, it took viewers a moment to realise that the exchange was, in fact, real.

The brief but memorable exchange instantly caught the internet’s attention, not just for the presence of Bill Gates in one of India’s most iconic television dramas, but also for the irony of seeing him appear on an Apple product. To make matters even more amusing, the Apple logo was visibly blurred out.

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A SOCIAL MESSAGE BENEATH THE MEME

Beyond the laughs, the scene itself carried a serious social message. In the episode, Irani’s character, Tulsi Virani, speaks with Gates about maternal and child health, a cause his foundation has long championed in India, especially in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Encouraged by her children, Tulsi begins the call with a cheerful “Jai Shree Krishna,” before explaining the traditional Godh Bharai (baby shower) ceremony and its emphasis on women’s health. Gates responds warmly, discussing his foundation’s ongoing efforts to reduce maternal and infant mortality and sharing how becoming a grandfather deepened his interest in the issue.

Both agree that when mothers are healthy, “children thrive, and the world moves forward.”

WHY GATES CHOSE TULSI VIRANI

Experts say the collaboration makes sense. Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, first launched in 2000, was a cultural phenomenon that reshaped Indian television for nearly a decade. Millions tuned in daily to follow Tulsi’s struggles and triumphs within the fictional Virani family.

Now, 25 years later, the drama serial has returned for a second innings, with Tulsi older, wiser, and still facing family drama, but with new layers of social awareness woven into the script. The show’s themes now touch on divorce, women’s rights, and maternal health, issues that align closely with Irani’s real-life experience as a former minister for women and child development.

Smriti Irani told CNBC India that she has previously worked with the Gates Foundation in her capacity as a minister, and seeing that partnership now reflected in a television drama could help the message reach a much wider audience.

The Gates cameo marks a first-of-its-kind crossover between global philanthropy and Indian television melodrama. The reactions, however, have been a mixture of delight and disgust. “What multiverse is this?” one fan asked, while another confessed, “It’s so cringe, but I love it so much.”

For now, Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2 has found itself back in the spotlight, thanks to a moment that united Apple, Microsoft, and Indian television in one scene.