A video of a Holi celebration on Kolkata’s iconic Howrah Bridge is being shared with a misleading claim that it shows Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supporters celebrating after the initial rounds of counting that indicated a victory for the party in West Bengal during the assembly election results on May 4.
BOOM found that the video is old and not from the assembly election results announcement day. It shows a Holi celebration in Kolkata in March this year.
The BJP is on course to form its first government in West Bengal since independence after defeating the three-time ruling Trinamool Congress. BJP's Suvendu Adhikari defeated Mamata Banerjee in her home turf Bhabanipur, by a margin of over 15,000 votes. Following the unprecedented victory, Prime Minister Narendra Modi thanked party workers and credited them for the outcome.
Reports of sporadic post-verdict violence have emerged with TMC alleging vandalisation and attacks by the BJP. Meanwhile, Kolkata Police has already imposed a ban on all victory processions, rallies, and public celebrations on May 4 to maintain public peace.
The Claim: Media Misreport Video As Recent
News outlet Pune Mirror shared the video on their verified X handle with the misleading claim.
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
Other news outlets such as Times Now Navbharat and News18 India also made similar misleading claims with the video.
What We Found: Video Is From Holi Celebration
1. Video Is From March 2026: We broke the video into keyframes and found that the same video was posted by an Instagram user on March 9, 2026, which predates the West Bengal election results announcement.
2. Rolls-Royce Holi Celebration in Kolkata: Taking a cue, we ran a keyword search related to Holi celebrations on Howrah Bridge in Kolkata and found multiple videos featuring similar visuals. Posts from March 1, 2026, described the visuals as “Rolls-Royce Holi” celebrations in Kolkata.
According to a report published by The Telegraph on March 1, 2026, "The Bagla family’s Holi celebration, popularly known as the ‘Rolls Royce Holi’ of Kolkata, took place on Sunday. The procession started at Satyanaran temple in Howrah, rolled through Howrah Bridge, and ended at Sonapatti, Burrabazar. The celebration turns 141 this year, said Ashok Sehgal, a core member of the organisers."
The report also added that the Rolls-Royce holds importance as it was bought from Rudyard Kipling, making it a symbol of Kolkata’s cultural heritage.
