How Archita Phukan Viral Video Fueled an AI Porn Hoax and Shamed a Real Woman

The viral rise of AI-generated persona Babydoll Archi, falsely built on a real woman's morphed images, highlights India's growing porn addiction, lack of sex education, and rising misuse of artificial intelligence for digital exploitation.

A few weeks ago, an Instagram reel of a woman in a saree lip-syncing to a Spanish song suddenly flooded timelines. The handle was Babydoll Archi and it gained over 1.4 million followers almost overnight. Many believed she was a real person named Archita Phukan, a bold influencer from Assam who had survived sex work and now lived in the US.

The posts looked real. The backstory felt powerful. Even adult film star Kendra Lust appeared to comment on it. But none of it was true.

The real woman behind the fake account

The woman in the images was real but not the influencer people were made to believe she was. According to Dibrugarh Police, she is a married resident of Assam who had no link to the adult industry. Her photos were stolen and altered to build a fake persona.

What began as online harassment soon became a business with fake posts, a subscription website, morphed videos and sexualised AI-generated content. All under her name and face, without her knowledge or consent.

The man behind Babydoll Archi

Police arrested Pratim Bora, a 26-year-old engineer from Tinsukia, Assam. He had studied in Haryana and worked remotely for a Delhi-based company. Bora was arrested after police traced his IP address and location using technical tools.

He allegedly used a single image of the woman to create hundreds of AI-generated posts and videos, using tools like Midjourney and OpenAI. He also created fake Gmail accounts and used multiple SIM cards to run the account anonymously.

According to the police, Bora was not only sharing morphed images but also creating content that made it seem like Archita Phukan had a troubled past in sex work and had paid Rs 25 lakh to leave it behind, which was a lie that many believed due to how real the content looked.

Why people believed it

The fake persona exploded in popularity, partly due to a comment from US adult star Kendra Lust on one of the pics. Morphed images showed them together, which helped the story gain further traction.

Entertainment pages, meme accounts and even gossip handles picked up the story. No one fact-checked the background. Everyone assumed she was real.

What this case shows about India's porn problem

This case is not just about one fake profile. It reveals a deeper issue!! India's increasing obsession with porn-style content, morphed videos and secretive online sex fantasies.

Due to a lack of sex education and the taboo around open discussions on sexuality, pornography often becomes the first source of information for young people. But porn does not reflect real relationships. It is scripted, staged and edited. Unfortunately, it is now a dominant part of online behaviour.

Many of Archita Phukan's viral posts had comment sections full of bots and real users asking for 'more clips' or 'uncensored links'. The hunger for such content is growing faster than platforms and the law can handle.

The damage done to people

For the real woman whose identity was hijacked, this has been nothing short of trauma. She did not seek fame, followers or controversy but now finds herself known online as someone she never claimed or even would have imagined to be.

Dibrugarh SSP Sizal Agarwal said, "We must think before we believe what we see online. Deepfakes are dangerous. One photo was used to destroy someone's dignity."

The police are also checking whether more people were involved in managing the fake accounts and profiting from the AI-generated content.

What needs to change

The fake Archita Phukan Instagram account and all the AI content posted on it calls for urgent attention to privacy and digital safety laws. 

• Stronger cyber laws are needed to stop deepfake porn and image manipulation.
• Better sex education is required to reduce harmful online behaviour.
• Public awareness must be raised so that people verify before they share, like, or comment.

What happened in this identity theft case is not just about tech, it's about ethics, empathy and accountability.

The Babydoll Archi case clearly shows how far fake content can go and how easy it is to ruin a life with just one photo. Artificial Intelligence is powerful, but without responsibility, it becomes dangerous.

As IPS Agarwal rightly said, "We need to apply our brains! The digital world might be virtual but the consequences are real."