A nearly three-year old image of Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan attending an event to commemorate the birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh in Mumbai, is being shared with a false caption claiming that the actor has extended his support to the ongoing farmers' protest.
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The viral post appears to have started as satire after parody Twitter handle @RoflGandhi_ tweeted the picture on December 4, 2020 while tagging actor Kangana Ranaut on the post.
The image is viral at a time when farmers from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh are protesting at the borders of Delhi against the three farm laws passed by the Central government. Leaders of various farmer unions have held repeated meetings with Narendra Tomar, the agriculture minister and other leaders.
A Hindi caption with the viral post translates to 'Kangana Ranaut's ex lover extends support to farmers protest'.
(Hindi: Kangana Ranaut के भूतपूर्व #प्रेमी #आशिक Hrithik Roshan पहुंचे #किसान_आंदोलन समर्थन में)
The caption takes a dig at actor Kangana Ranaut and a rumoured relationship with Roshan. Ranaut has been vocal in her support for the Narendra Modi-led government. The actor has also been called out for peddling misinformation on the protest.
The image is viral from several Facebook pages and Twitter handles with similar claims.
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Fact Check
BOOM did a reverse image search on the viral photo and found a YouTube video from January 6, 2018 that had the same visuals.
The video uploaded on verified YouTube page Bollywood Spy on January 6, 2018 shows Hrithik Roshan along with his father Rakesh Roshan attending an event. The title with the video reads 'Hrithik Roshan ATTENDS Celebrations Of Guru Gobind Singh Birth Anniversary'. The thumbnail of the YouTube video shows the exact same frame which is viral now.
We found the same picture in a set of four pictures tweeted on January 8, 2018.
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