E-Paper
‘Mere Papa ne sab kuch dekha’: Muskan Karia says her deepfake video left her traumatised
Content creator Muskan Karia has taken police action against a deepfake video that appears to show her in a compromising manner.
Content creator Muskan Karia has taken police action against a deepfake video that appears to show her in a compromising manner. In an Instagram post shared on August 12, the 22-year-old influencer — who is known for her catchphrase “I bet you didn’t know this” — said that Maharashtra Police have apprehended the people responsible for creating the video.
Karia said that the video was created using AI and appears extremely realistic. She stressed that it’s not real as she opened up about the mental toll the incident had taken on her.
“Ye main nahi hu”
Karia said that in late May, while house-hunting and moving homes, she received a direct message on Instagram containing a video with the caption "Is this you?".
“Main us video ko dekhke kaafi hil gayi thi because it was so realistic,” the influencer said, explaining that she was traumatised by the deepfake video.
The video was so realistic that even her family and friends were taken in by it. Karia had to prove to them that it wasn’t real. “Mujhe apno ko hi prove karna pad raha tha ki ye mai nahi hu,” she said.
“Main do mahine chup rahi,” she said, claiming that she did not speak on the issue for two months. The video, meanwhile, had already spread across social media and it was too late to undo the damage it had caused.
(Also read: Muskan Karia earns ₹3.6 crore from Instagram subscribers? Influencer sets record straight)
Taking police action
Karia explained the situation to her lawyer and showed him the original video that was used to create the deepfake.
To her Instagram viewers, she explained that it was a “normal video” that she had released to her subscribers which was used to create the inappropriate deepfake.
“Maine apne lawyer ko saari cheeze batayi, unko original video bhi bheji jo actually meri thi, jise deepfake kara gaya tha (I told my lawyer everything and sent him the original video of mine that was used to create the deepfake),” she said.
“Me and my lawyer, we took this case to the Cyber Cell, jaha pe mujhe original video submit karni thi aur deepfake video submit karni thi,” the influencer explained, saying that she had to submit the original as well as the deepfake to the Cyber Cell.
An FIR was filed claiming that the video was totally fake. Karia said the “main issue” was people believing it was real “and AI getting too much out of hand.”
Eventually, based on her complaint, Maharashtra Police were able to catch the culprits.
“We ended up also catching the culprits behind it. Police sir ne ek certificate bhi diya hai, stating that the video was a total deepfake,” she said.
Facing her family
Muskan Karia said that she had to face her family and explain that the video was fake and she would never do anything like that.
“Maine unhe puri cheez dikhayi, mere papa ne sab kuch dekha (I showed them everything, my father saw everything),” she told her Instagram audience. “And it was a total deepfake, because I would never do anything like that.”
“It was a normal video that was posted on my subscribers-only, aur use deepfake kara gaya hai,” she emphasised.
The content creator pointed out that she had the family support and the resources to fight the case. Many others are not as lucky. She urged her audience to spare a thought for those victims who do not even have the resources to fight fake videos.
“They are not able to take it, toh woh aise decisions le lete hain which are irreversible. And I really hope it makes some sense to you, buri cheeze na kare (They can’t take it, so they make decisions that are irreversible),” she said.
She ended her video by thanking Maharashtra Police, her lawyer, and her fellow creator Ashish Chanchlani. “Ashu if it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have been able to realise the power I hold,” said Karia.
