Images From Web Series Used to Claim RSS Man Beaten in Kerala

The man seen in the images is actor Arjun Ratan and the scene is from a video uploaded on Karikku’s handle.

Images of an actor from Malayalam web series were passed off with the false claim that they show an RSS man beaten in Kerala.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

An image is circulating on social media with the claim that a man identified as Chandraboss who belongs to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was beaten in Kerala because he attended a Muslim wedding.

However, the man seen in the images is actor and content creator Arjun Ratan and the scene is from a video ‘Smile Please’ uploaded on a digital platform called Karikku.

(Source: Twitter/ Screenshot)

CLAIM

The image is being used to claim how these incidents keep happening in Kerala.

The Twitter user Petyr Baelish who had tweeted the image with the same claim, later, tweeted: “I'm reading the comments on this tweet. Don't hurt your uncle, children #justiceforchandraboss#karikk @karikku_fresh”

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Twitter/ Screenshot)

The image is also being circulated with the claim: “0% humanity, 100% literacy, Shame on Kerala!”

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Twitter/ Screenshot)

Several Facebook users, too, have shared the image with the same narrative.

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Facebook/ Screenshot)

WHAT WE FOUND OUT

We saw that several Twitter users pointed out that the images are from a scene on a YouTube channel ‘Karriku.’

We, then, scanned through the YouTube handle of Karikku and could see the same man in the thumbnail images of one of the videos: ‘Smile Please | Comedy | Karikku.’

Further, we could find that the man in viral image dressed in orange kurta was seen in the web series in the same attire. His character is named as Chandraboss in the video.

Left: Viral image. Right: YouTube video.(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

We found that in the last frame of the episode, the man can be seen with the same injuries and same clothes. However, this frame has been shot from a different angle.

Left: Viral image. Right: YouTube video.(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

The description of the video mentions the cast of the show and we were able to identify that the man seen in the image is Arjun Ratan. The actor had, on 19 August, shared the same images on his Instagram account.

It is noteworthy that neither the original images, nor the episode, show a saffron tilak on the actor’s face, like seen in the viral images.

Evidently, images of an actor from Malayalam web series were passed off with the false claim that they show an RSS man beaten in Kerala.

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