Rashmika Mandanna's deepfake video goes viral; prompts criticism from Big B, IT Minister. All you need to know

In an incident signalling the misuse of artificial intelligence to spread misinformation, a deepfake video of actress Rashmika Mandanna has gone viral on the internet. Soon after the AI generated video went viral on the internet, the 'Pushpa' actress expressed her disappointment with the viral fake video and pointed out the possible misuse of technology to malign someone's image.

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In a first look, the AI-fabricated video shows Pushpa actress wearing a black dress and entering an elevatorto. However, the video is of another lady and was created by using an AI technology called deepfake. From top actors like Amitabh Bachchan to Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar, a lot of people have reacted on the video.

‘Extremely scary, need to address this with urgency,' says Rashmika Mandanna

After the video went viral on social media, Rashmika Mandanna said that it is "extremely scary" how technology is being misused.

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Mandanna also expressed her concern through Instagram, saying she was "really hurt" to see the video, which shows a woman dressed in black workout onesie inside an elevator. Her face has been edited using artificial intelligence (AI) to resemble Mandanna.

"Today as a woman and as an actor, I am thankful for my family, friends and well wishers who are my protection and support system. But if this happened to me when I was in school or college, I genuinely can't imagine how could I ever tackle this. We need to address this as a community and with urgency before more of us are affected by such identity," Rashmika Mandanna posted on Instagram.

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"I feel really hurt to share this and have to talk about the deep fake video of me being spread online. Something like this is honestly extremely scary not only for me but also for each one of us who today is vulnerable to so much harm because of how technology is being misused," the actor, known for her roles in films such as "Pushpa", "Mission Majnu" and the upcoming "Animal", wrote.

Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan demands for legal action

Even before Rashmika Mandanna's statement, the video received a sharp reaction from Amitabh Bachchan. He was the first to react after a fact checker posted the deepfake clip along with the original video of a British-Indian social media personality Zara Patel, and demanded an urgent need for a legal and regulatory framework to deal with deepfakes in India.

Reacting to the post, Bachchan said, "Yes this is a strong case for legal".

What is deepfake AI technology?

The Deepfake technology uses AI and machine learning to create visual and audio content to mislead viewers. It imposes someone else's characters over another media file in such a way that it looks like a real video.

The technology is banned from a range of platforms as it can serve as an effective tool to defame a person or spread misinformation.