A photograph allegedly showing a Chennai Super Kings (CSK) fan holding a placard abusing Aurangzeb and his followers during an IPL match, has surfaced on social media platforms amid row over the Mughal emperor’s tomb.
Multiple social media users shared the purported photo praising the CSK fan on his alleged signboard against Aurangzeb. Newschecker, however, found that the image was manipulated using AI.
Such posts can be seen here, here and here.
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Fact Check/Verification
A Google Lens search on the image led us to an Instagram post by writer-director Rathna Kumar (@mr.rathna), dated March 24, 2025. Carrying a photo similar to the viral image, it stated, “MAHI is part of my life. CSK is part of my heart. They never lost whenever I went to ground and saw the match.” The photo was also posted by Kumar on his official X account.
On comparing the two images, we found that the viral photo carrying a poster on Aurganzeb was manipulated.
While other elements in the photo by Kumar were identical to the one seen in the viral image, we found that the placard text actually said, “The Man. The Myth. The Mahi (referring to MS Dhoni)”.
Further, we also noticed that his hands were disfigured in the viral image. The text written on the jerseys of Kumar and a person standing next to him were also distorted in the viral image, indicating that the photo was likely altered using AI.
We also spotted the watermark of GROK, X’s AI assistant, in the full version of the viral image shared by Instagram user @therationaleindian.
For demonstration purposes, Newschecker asked GROK to change the text on the original photo to “Hello”. The resultant images showed the anomalies – distorted hands, and text on jerseys- as seen in the viral photo.
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AI detection tool Hive Moderation also concluded a 99.9% likelihood of the image containing AI generated or Deepfake content.
Moreover, Kumar called out another version of the viral image in an X post, stating , “Who are you guys? Amidst all the issues we have… morphing maniacs.”
Newschecker reached out to Kumar who shared the actual photos of him at the stadium, holding up placards about Mahendra Singh Dhoni, confirming that the viral images are edited.
Conclusion
Hence, the viral photo allegedly showing a CSK fan holding placard abusing Aurangzeb in the stadium was found to have been altered using AI.
Sources
Instagram Post By @mr.rathna, Dated March 24, 2025
X post By @MrRathna, Dated March 23, 2025
X post By @MrRathna, Dated March 24, 2025
Self Analysis
