Authors
Claim
As political parties are gearing up for the Lok Sabha elections 2024, a video featuring actor Allu Arjun making rounds on social media claiming that the South Indian superstar is campaigning for Congress. Posting that video on the X handle a user @JhaPriyankha wrote in Hindi, “Allu Arjun in the field to honor Congress.”
Movie Critic and actor Kamaal R Khan also posted the same video on the X handle with a caption like, “Allu Arjun the biggest superstar of India is campaigning for congress party.”
An archive version of such videos can be seen here and here.
Fact
A reverse search of a keyframe of the viral video led us to the official YouTube channel of the actor Allu Arjun. We found that the ‘Pushpa’ movie star has posted a longer version of the same video on August 23, 2022, there, and titled, “Icon Star Allu Arjun as Grand Marshal @ 40th India Day Parade in New York”. The individuals seen alongside Allu Arjun in the viral video are also present in the original footage.
Per the report published by news agency ANI on August 22, 2022, the actor participated as an invitee in the annual India Day parade in New York, where he served as the grand marshal to commemorate the 75th anniversary of India’s independence.
Other news outlets like Hindustan Times, Wion and NDTV also published the same news at that time.
The actor had also shared some more images of the event on his X handle during that time.
Conclusion
Thus it is clear that the viral claim is False. The viral video shows Allu Arjun attending the 40th India Day Parade in New York as Grand Marshal, not campaigning for Congress.
Result: False
Source
Video by Allu Arjun, dated August 22, 2022
Report by ANI dated August 22, 2022
Report by Hindustan Times, Wion and NDTV
