Fact Check: Video showing actress Samantha Prabhu appealing to voters to vote for TDP is edited
Video showing actress Samantha Prabhu appealing to voters to vote for TDP is edited
Ahead of the 2024 Assembly and General polls in Andhra Pradesh, a video is in circulation on social media featuring actress Samantha Ruth Prabhu, urging the electorate to vote for the Cycle symbol as it would put the state on the growth track. Cycle is the party symbol of Telugu Desam Party (TDP).
A user on micro-blogging platform X shared a video featuring Samantha, along with a Telugu caption, which roughly translates to "vote for development, vote for the cycle symbol."
Fact Check:
The video in circulation showing Samantha Ruth Prabhu endorsing the TDP for the upcoming elections in Andhra Pradesh is misleading. It is an edited video with footage taken from an earlier video.
Upon conducting a Google keyword search for 'Samantha Prabhu vote for Telugu Desam Party (TDP),' we found a news article by The Hindu dated April 10, 2019. According to the article, Samantha urged Repalle voters, a town in Bapatla district, Andhra Pradesh, to elect Anagani Satya Prasad. He is currently an MLA (Member of Legislative Assembly) from Repalle constituency in Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh.
We found the extended version of the viral video from 2019 on YouTube. In the extended video, Samantha explicitly advocated development and urged Repalle voters to support Satya Prasad and make him win the seat. The actor is connected to Anagani Satya Prasad and his sister Dr Manjula Anagani, who is the co-founder of Prathyusa Foundation founded by Samantha Prabhu.
The viral video includes snippets of "vote for development" and "vote for the cycle symbol," from the footage shot during 2019 elections. It has nothing to do with the ongoing campaign in Andhra Pradesh.
Using keyword search ‘Samantha supports TDP’, we also found an article in India Today dated April 11, 2019, stating that Samantha faced significant backlash after she supported the TDP. We also found a tweet on X where Samantha addressed a user's query about her connection with Satya Prasad. Unfortunately, her clarification wasn't received well by her fans.
Hence, the claim made by social media user, suggesting that Samantha Prabhu is endorsing the cycle symbol ahead of the elections in Andhra Pradesh, is misleading. The viral video in circulation on social media has been edited picking selective shots, creating a distorted version of Samantha Prabhu's statements.