Fact Check: Mahesh Babu’s son Gautam did not wear a stole with TDP flag symbol, viral pic was edited

As the results for the LS and Assembly polls will be out in a few days, the political atmosphere is heating up by the day. All the candidates had campaigned and are anxiously waiting for the results.

In this backdrop, one post featuring a photograph of actor Mahesh Babu and his son Gautam Ghattamaneni standing together is widely in circulation on social media. In the photograph, Gautam is wearing a yellow stole with the TDP (Telugu Desam Party) flag symbol printed on it.

Social media users shared the photographs with a caption “MESSAGE IS CLEAR”

In the viral photographs there is an overlay text too: “మహేష్ బాబు కూడా TDP ఎరా”

When translated, it means: “Mahesh Babu is also TDP supporter”

Fact Check: We found the claim is false. The photograph was edited to add the TDP flag logo to Gautam's stole. In the original picture, Gautam is wearing a yellow stole with the ISH (International School of Hyderabad) logo printed on it for his graduation ceremony.

In the comments section of the viral post, a user named నేనింతే నేనింతే shared another photo similar to the viral one. This photograph features Mahesh Babu with his wife Namrata Shirodkar, their son Gautam, and their daughter Sitara posing together. In this photo, Gautam is wearing the same yellow stole but with a different logo printed on it.

Upon careful observation, it is evident that the stole in the viral image and the one in the original photograph are completely different.

In the family photograph, we found "ISH 2024" printed on Gautam's stole.

When we downloaded the image and performed a reverse image search, we discovered that Mahesh Babu had shared the photograph on his social media with a caption: “My heart bursts with pride! Congratulations on your graduation, son! This next chapter is yours to write, and I know you’ll shine brighter than ever. Keep chasing your dreams, and remember, you’re always loved! I am a proud father today @gautamghattamaneni”.

In the same post, we found that Mahesh Babu shared photographs and a video of Gautam. In the post, Gautam is wearing a stole printed with the ISH logo. In the video, Gautam is also seen receiving a degree with the same uniform.

When we searched for ISH, we found that it is an educational institute named "International School of Hyderabad." On their website, ISH has posted their logo, which matches with the one on Gautam's stole.

During the reverse image search, we also found that several media pages had shared the same photographs.

On May 27, 2024 Hindustan Times published an article with a headline “Mahesh Babu, Namrata Shirodkar attend son Gautam's graduation ceremony: ‘I know you’ll shine brighter than ever’

According to News 18 “Mahesh Babu Attends Son Gautam Ghattamaneni’s Graduation Ceremony: ‘I Am A Proud Father Today”

Hence, based on our investigation and several media reports, we found that the viral image was edited. Mahesh Babu's son Gautam was wearing a yellow stole with the ISH logo while attending his graduation ceremony.