Fact Check: Saif Ali Khan’s face, eye injured during knife attack? Here’s truth behind viral photo
A viral image of Saif Ali Khan with bruises on the face and eye has gone viral with the claim that it shows the extent of his injuries in the recent knife attack in Mumbai.
By Sibahathulla Sakib Published on 21 Jan 2025 5:51 PM IST
Claim: The image shows Saif Ali Khan’s injuries after being attacked by a home intruder in Mumbai.
Fact: The claim is false. The image shows Saif Ali Khan’s makeup for his movie Laal Kaptaan in 2019.
Hyderabad: Actor Saif Ali Khan was admitted to Mumbai’s Lilavati Hospital after being attacked with a knife by an intruder at his home. The Mumbai Police apprehended the attacker in Thane city on Sunday. They identified him as 30-year-old Bangladeshi resident Mohammad Shariful Islam Shehzad. He was later presented before a metropolitan magistrate’s court that same afternoon.
Amid these developments, a photo of Saif Ali Khan with bruises on his face including a black eye has gone viral with the claim that it shows the extent of the actor’s injuries in the attack.
The viral image was shared by a Threads user with the caption, “Saif Ali Khan stabbed: 30 minutes in the dead of night, Rs 1 crore demand, the attack and the escape.”
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false. The image was Saif Ali Khan’s makeup for his movie Laal Kaptaan in 2019.
A reverse image search of the viral photo led to an X post from October 8, 2019, with the caption, “Behind the scene photos of Saif Ali Khan from Laal Kaptaan.” The post stated that the image showed the actor’s makeup for his role in the film.
Further keyword search led to a report by The Times of India, dated October 8, 2019, titled ‘Mangled and bleeding: Here’s how Saif Ali Khan looked after an intense scene in Laal Kaptaan.’
The report confirmed that the photo was from the 2019 movie where Saif portrayed a Naga Sadhu.
The image, showing his bruised face and an injured eye, was a hot topic of discussion at the time. Many have drawn comparisons between Saif’s dreadlocked, bearded appearance in the movie and Johnny Depp’s iconic look from the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ franchise.
Other media outlets, including Amar Ujala and Jagran, also reported on Saif Ali Khan’s appearance in Laal Kaptaan, praising the makeup design and detailing how it contributed to his fierce portrayal in the movie.
According to a Reuters report, Saif Ali Khan sustained stab wounds to his spine, neck and hand, as confirmed by the doctors.
The report quoted Dr Nitin Dange, one of the surgeons, who said, "He suffered a significant injury to the thoracic spinal cord caused by a knife lodged in his spine. Surgery was carried out to remove the knife and repair the leaking spinal fluid." The report did not mention any injuries to Saif Ali Khan's face.
Additionally, we found that the visuals from the movie Laal Kaptaan featured a similar appearance in some scenes.
Therefore, the claim that the viral image shows Saif Ali Khan’s injuries following a real-life attack is false. The image shows Saif Ali Khan’s makeup for his film Laal Kaptaan in 2019.
