A video has been viewed thousands of times in social media posts that claim it shows an Indian actor performing a real-life motorbike stunt on the Burj Khalifa skyscraper in Dubai for a soda advert. However, the makers of the advert said it shows a digitally created action sequence, not a genuine stunt.
"This Hrithik Roshan stunt was lethal," reads the Hindi-language title of a YouTube video uploaded on December 23, 2021.
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It shows an advert for Mountain Dew soda starring Indian actor Hrithik Roshan, in which he takes a sip of the drink before apparently hurtling down a steep track from the top of the world's tallest building, Burj Khalifa, as crowds gasp in amazement.
Text overlaid on the video reads: "Hrithik Roshan did this dangerous stunt from the top of Burj Khalifa."
Screenshot of the misleading post. Taken February 15, 2022. The claim was shared in similar posts on Facebook here, here, here and here; and YouTube here and here.
Some social media users appeared to believe the video shows Roshan in a a real-life motorbike performance.
"It was a very dangerous stunt, that's why Hrithik Roshan is a superstar," one person commented.
"Superb stunt by Hrithik," another wrote.
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However, the posts are misleading.
The video corresponds to an advert published here by Mountain Dew India on Twitter on December 20.
A Hindi-language disclaimer has been overlaid in the advert which states: "Stunts shown here are created using digital effects. Don't try to imitate."
Screenshot of the advert with the disclaimer highlighted by AFP. Below is a screenshot comparison of the video in the misleading post (left) and the advert posted by Mountain Dew (right).
Simi Mehta, consumer relations manager for PepsiCo, which manufacturers Mountain Dew, said the claim in the posts was "false".
"This advertisement video shows digital effects. However, our shooting team has visited Burj Khalifa and we have included some video shots from there," Mehta told AFP.
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"We have clearly mentioned in the disclaimer in the video that this video shows digital effects."
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by BOOM staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
