Sometimes, stories retold will tell an untold story.

Many Indians recounted their “SRK stories” on Tuesday when actor Shah Rukh Khan turned 56. It would have been a birthday unlike many the actor had celebrated after scripting one of the most astonishing takeovers of tinsel town by an “outsider”.

His son Aryan had been in incarceration for nearly a month in a narcotics case — something that usually destroys reputations forever.

However, at some point, the tide of public opinion appeared to change, probably aided by a perception that the son was being targeted to settle scores with the father who has always symbolised the best India can offer the world.

Several of the “SRK stories” narrated by his admirers neither referred to the drugs case nor hinted at any vile conspiracy — perhaps that was what made the accounts poignant.

And telling. Sometimes, stories retold will tell an untold story.

Those who posted social media messages were all either official or well-identified handles, not needing the cover of anonymity that trolls spewing vitriol 24/7 often seek.

A former student reporter of The Telegraph In Schools, Rudrani Dasgupta, tweeted this thread: “2001, I was in 6th grade, volunteering for a school newspaper called The Telegraph in Schools. SRK was in Kolkata for ‘Asoka’. Me and a fellow journalist wanted to interview him!

“It was the longest of shots. We were two school kids with zero clout. There was a long queue of prominent journalists at The Park Hotel, waiting to meet him. Some people openly laughed in my face, an interview with the superstar..? Well, we had nothing to lose.

“Introduced ourselves to his team who noted our request (along with a long line of others) and said it was highly improbable, best case scenario he would agree to meet for 15 minutes. We waited and then suddenly, our request was approved! ‘15 minutes only’, they warned.

“We stumbled in. There he was, busily typing away on a communicator! He looked at us, smiled and said ‘first of all, you two must tell me your names’. Hah! He spoke to us at length about his life, treated us like peers, and apologised every time his phone rang.

“SRK was humble, soft-spoken and funny throughout that interview. And we were ickle children with many journalists waiting outside. He spoke to us for 45 minutes!! His team was annoyed but we couldn’t care less. (Emoticon with tears of joy). Thank you for all of that, SRK. Happy Birthday.”

Rudrani also shared a picture of the printed interview.

The stories kept coming.

Kasturi Gandhi, public policy researcher and granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson and activist Arun Manilal Gandhi, tweeted: “Every new car’s first drive was from the showroom — Natural’s — Mt Mary, Mannat, Bandstand, Carter Road — home. All visiting family (esp my nani) when asked where do you want to go would instantly answer ‘SRK nu ghar jova (I want to see SRK’s house)’.

“I literally watched Swades before my Rural Policy paper to calm my nerves. Through the past weeks I was reminded how cherished he is and felt bad for having asked more of him politically. He deserves to be celebrated even in his apparent silence. Happy Birthday @iamsrk.”

Yasmin Kidwai, a Congress municipal councillor, shared on Twitter a clip of Shah Rukh speaking in a documentary titled Filmistaan that she had made: “I am married to a Hindu…. Actually down the road here, I don’t even know whether all the people celebrating Id, if they are Muslims or not. And all the people who are celebrating Diwali are Hindu or not…. Ganpati, we all go down and do visarjan….. I don’t think by nature our country has any attempt, thought, belief that we should be divided.”

Some hailed the dignity with which Shah Rukh had handled the difficult three weeks when his son was in jail and he was subjected to vicious attacks online and from sections of the media.

Filmmaker Hansal Mehta, who admitted to only briefly meeting Shah Rukh once, had this to say: “I was seeking help for a child who was suffering from a tumour and needed urgent financial support for a life-saving surgery. I tweeted about this around midnight and then slept as I was shooting early mornings in Haryana.

“I was on shoot and I had 3 missed calls from a number I did not recognise. I had a very polite SMS from the number asking me to call back. The message was from SRK…. He said whatever they needed will be taken care of.

Fans outside Mannat, Shah Rukh Khan’s Bandra mansion, on his birthday on Tuesday. PTI

“In less than a few hours the hospital was contacted, funds were transferred. Somebody got a new life. Quietly, gently, without fuss a life was saved. This happened once again a few months later.”

Mehta added: “A star is loved for his films, his persona, his charisma but for me a superstar is somebody who possesses that rare compassion and unlikely humility when helping somebody in need.”

Some of the stories were short, deeply personal and cherished.

Ghazala Jamil, who teaches at Jawaharlal Nehru University, tweeted: “Om Shanti Om was the first film my daughter saw in a theatre. Not yet 2, she was an instant fan and sombrely declared, ‘Amma, Sharooo Uncle merey Abba hain!’ I still can’t stop grinning!!”

Netflix executive Pulkit Kochar tweeted: “My dad used to bring movie VCR cassettes on rent and one day he brought Baazigar. Me, being a 5 year old SRK fan, was overjoyed who had seen him in movies like DDLJ. But this time, SRK died in the climax. I was shattered.

“I thought he died for real and I could not digest it. My dad returned the cassette but for the next 5 days I was so sad I won’t eat properly, my hero was not alive anymore. My dad noticed that and brought the cassette again and played the movie.

“But this time, he stopped the movie at interval and said ‘Picture khatam ho gayi (the film has ended)’. I was overjoyed to know he’s alive. Plot, story, screenplay never mattered to a 5 year old me anyway, what mattered was SRK.”

Among his colleagues who wished Shah Rukh were Salman Khan, Sanjay Dutt, Juhi Chawla, who stood surety during Aryan’s bail, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Kareena Kapoor Khan and Karan Johar.

Eulogies on the birthdays of celebrities are not uncommon, and Shah Rukh’s birthday is an annual day of observances for his fans. But this time, it was different.

During a Q&A session on Instagram on Wednesday, Kajol, Shah Rukh’s co-star in many blockbuster films, was asked why she didn’t wish him on his birthday. Kajol replied: “What more can I wish him? I think all his wishes came true when his son came back home.”

In the end, it was Alia Bhatt, Shah Rukh’s co-star in Dear Zindagi, who summed up all that the actor had stood for all his life.

“My favourite person. King of not just cinema. King of goodness, king of possibly-it-all! Happy happy birthday SR. You are and always will be synonymous with LOVE. Love is the greatest thing in this world. And so are you. I hope, wish and pray that you only have good, love-filled days in your life always and forever — because that’s all you give us,” the actress wrote on Instagram.