Fact Check: Hyderabad Buddha statue installation footage from 1992? No, video is AI-generated
A video has been circulating on social media, claiming it shows the installation of the Buddha statue in Hyderabad in 1992.
By - Md Mahfooz Alam
Claim:The video shows the installation of the Buddha statue in Hussain Sagar at Tank Bund, Hyderabad, in 1992.
Fact:The claim is misleading. The video is AI-generated.
Hyderabad: A video showing the installation of a giant Buddha statue, followed by its transportation by ship across water, is circulating with the claim that it shows the statue’s installation in Hussain Sagar, Hyderabad, in 1992.
A Facebook user shared the video with the caption, “Just roll back to 1992 and recollect the olden days when the Buddha Statue was being installed at Hussain Sagar in Tank Bund, Hyderabad.”
The text overlaid in the video reads “Establishment of Buddha statue at Hyderabad in 1992.”
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is misleading, as this video is AI-generated.
Discrepancy in the video
We identified several anomalies in the video that suggest AI generation, including vehicles travelling in opposing directions within the same lane, people with missing body parts, and individuals who disappear completely between frames in an unnatural manner. The video also has many bystanders shooting the statue's transportation with cell phones, which were not present in 1992.
Source of the video
A reverse image search of the video’s keyframe traced it to an Instagram account called Bharath FX, which uploaded it on September 7.
The account’s caption clearly states that the images and videos shown in the reel are purely AI-generated content. It also includes a disclaimer stating that the account has no intention to hurt or harm anyone and that the post is created for entertainment purposes only.
We also found multiple AI-generated videos posted by the same account, each with disclaimers in their captions acknowledging their artificial generation. According to the account’s bio, the creator is a digital artist specialising in 3D computer graphics (VFX, film and animation), video editing and filmmaking.
Tool result
We analysed the video using the AI-detector Deepfake-O-meter. One of its detector algorithms flagged the content as likely AI-generated with 100 per cent confidence, while another detector indicated it was likely AI-generated with a 95.1 per cent confidence score.
Was the Buddha statue installed in Hyderabad in 1992?
According to a 2017 report by The News Minute, the Buddha statue was successfully installed in 1992 and has remained a source of pride for the city ever since.
The report revealed that during transportation, the statue had tipped over and remained submerged at the bottom of Hussain Sagar Lake for two years. The article also noted that the iconic monolithic statue of Gautama Buddha, located at the centre of Hyderabad’s Hussain Sagar, was created by renowned sculptor and Indian architect Sattanatha Muthaiya Ganapathi Sthapathi.
The Washington Post also reported on April 8, 1990, that beneath 35 feet of murky lake water in central Hyderabad lay what was potentially the world’s tallest monolithic statue, a newly constructed 50-foot, 440-ton granite sculpture of Buddha.
Therefore, we conclude that the Buddha statue was indeed installed in Hyderabad in 1992. However, the viral video is AI-generated. Hence, the claim is misleading.
