Fact Check: Viral image showing Sonia Gandhi holding a cigarette is AI-morphed

Nowadays, AI-generated images are trending on social media. Users are using AI tools to morph their own pictures to look more attractive, often resembling celebrities. Graphic designers have stepped into the AI world, which is making their work easier and faster. However, some people misuse these AI tools to manipulate pictures. Previously, celebrities like Rashmika Mandanna, Kajol and Katrina Kaif faced similar problems.

Recently, a black-and-white photograph went viral on social media, showing Congress leader Sonia Gandhi holding a cigarette. This image has been confirmed as morphed.

Social media users shared the image with the Odia text "ଆଜିକୁ ପ୍ରାୟ ଛ ସାତ ଦଶକ ତଳର ଫଟୋ, କହିଲ ଦେଖି ଏ କିଏ ?"   The photo is from nearly six or seven decades ago. Can anyone tell who is she?

Fact Check: We found the claim is false. In the original image, the woman holding the cigarette is not Congress leader Sonia Gandhi.

Through a reverse image search, we discovered that the photo was shared by a Facebook page called Casa Libia with the caption: “Iranian woman smoking a cigarette. Iran, 2012. Photo: Farzad Sarfarazi.” 

When we search the keyword “Farzad Sarfarazi photography” in Google, we found a website named dasculturas.com which shared the same photograph with the caption “Persian | Iran | photographed by Farzad Sarfarazi, 2012 

We also found several users share the same photograph

If you observe closely, you can find a watermark in the bottom right of the image that says “Remark.” When we searched for this on Google, we found that Remark is an AI tool that offers several features, including an “AI face swap online” tool. This free online face changer allows users to swap heads and replace faces in photos.   

Hence, we found the claim is false. The photograph of the woman holding the cigarette has been morphed to appear as Sonia Gandhi.