A video featuring a montage of four AI-generated images of a large sword excavated from the ground is being shared online with a false claim that it shows swords which were used by Kumbhakarna, Ravana's brother from the Hindu mythology Ramayana, discovered in Sri Lanka.
BOOM found that the visuals are not real and have been generated using artificial intelligence.
Kumbhakarna, a mythological character from the Hindu epic Ramayana, is described as a powerful warrior of gigantic size who fought against Hindu god Rama and his army during Rama’s quest to rescue his wife, Sita. Sita was held in captivity by Ravana, Kumbhakarna’s brother and the king of Lanka.
The different visuals show men who appear to be workers wearing construction helmets standing close to an excavated pit in the ground where a gigantic ancient sword can be seen.
Several verified users on X shared the video and wrote, "SWORD OF KUMBHAKARNA IS FOUND IN LANKA. SO RAAMAYANA IS NOT A STORY. Kumbhakaran's sword found in Sri Lanka - Ramayana 100% truth".
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Fact Check
BOOM tested each of the visuals on TrueMedia, a tool for journalists to detect visuals generated using artificial intelligence, which concluded that there is substantial evidence of using of AI tools for all the visuals present in the video.
Additionally, we reached out to TrueMedia, who confirmed that the video is a compilation of fake AI-generated images, verified by one of the organisation's human reviewers as well.
First Image
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Second Image
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Third Image
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Fourth Image
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