A shocking video claiming to show a man named Raju Patel from Madhya Pradesh’s Pench petting and feeding liquor to a tiger went viral on social media but turns out, the entire incident is fake and the video is AI-generated.
A shocking video recently stormed social media, allegedly showing a drunk man casually petting a tiger and even offering it liquor inside Madhya Pradesh’s Pench Tiger Reserve. The video, which seemed straight out of a wild fantasy, turned out to be nothing more than an AI-crafted illusion.
The viral clip claimed that Raju Patel, a 52-year-old labourer from Pench, drunkenly mistook a tiger for a “big cat” during a late-night stroll and decided to pet it under the streetlights. The visuals were so strikingly realistic that thousands believed it was genuine CCTV footage from the reserve.
However, fact-checkers have debunked the entire incident, confirming that the clip was AI-generated and not based on any real event. No credible media outlet or forest department has reported any such incident — a clear sign that this viral video was a digital deception.
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Social media, however, turned the fake fiasco into a meme fest. Comment sections were flooded with jokes — from people demanding Raju’s “secret liquor recipe” to others marveling at AI’s power to dupe millions.
A user wrote, "Bro with respect Tigers are masters of camouflage & don't sit on streets this way, particularly near human settlements. This seems AI generated!"
One user joked that, “They also wanted to know which AI tool he used to create the video,” while another admitted, "AI generated content for engagement farming and I also took bait."
Wildlife experts have urged netizens to verify sensational clips before sharing them, as AI-generated content grows alarmingly realistic. One IFS officer cautioned, “...Don’t forward them. May create unnecessary panic.”
