Photos from international destinations passed off as visuals from India amid row with the Maldives

What is the claim?

Amid the diplomatic row between India and the Maldives over the disparaging comments made by several Maldivian ministers against India and its Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the latter's visit to Lakshadweep, Indian social media users have begun a campaign to urge people to boycott the island nation and visit domestic tourist destinations instead. Several users have shared photos of Indian tourist attractions, including Lakshadweep, an Indian union territory in the Arabian Sea.

On January 7, Indian actor Ranveer Singh posted a photo showing three islands with the caption, “This year let’s make 2024 about exploring India and experiencing our culture. There is so much to see and explore across the beaches and the beauty of our country Chalo India let’s #exploreindianislands Chalo bharat dekhe”. While Singh has since deleted his post, an archived version of the post can be accessed here.

The now-deleted post shared by Ranveer Singh. (Source:X/Modified by Logically Facts)

Former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag also posted four photos purportedly showing different locations in India. An archived version of this post can be viewed here.

Virender Sehwag’s post. (Source:X)

In another post from January 6, a user shared multiple images on X with the caption, “We welcome all the tourists of the world to our Lakshadweep .🏞️🏄‍♂️Promote India tourism. #BycottMaldives #Lakshadweep”. An archived version of this post can be accessed here.

Post shared on X. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

What is the truth?

However, we found that these photos shared on social media purporting to show Indian locations are actually from different international destinations. 

Photo posted by Ranveer Singh

Using Google reverse image search, we found that the image was posted on the photo-sharing platform Pexels in 2018 and was attributed to Asad Photo Maldives. Logically Facts contacted the photographer Asad, who claimed he had clicked the photos showing islands Maalhos, Hibalhidhoo, and Dharavandhoo in the Maldives from a seaplane. 

Further, we were able to geolocate the islands to confirm that they were in the Maldives. The shape of the Maalhos island as seen on Google Maps is the same as the photo shared by Singh. Also, a small dock on the western side of the island, as seen in the viral picture, can be spotted on Google Maps as well.

The other two islands with similar shapes can also be seen in proximity to Maalhos, as seen in the image shared by Singh.

Comparison between viral image and a Google Maps image of Maalhos island. (Source: Google Maps/ Pexels/Altered by Logically Facts)

Virender Sehwag’s post

Using reverse-image search, we found that the third image posted by Sehwag was posted by photographer Karl Shakur on July 11, 2018, on his Instagram account. The post says the photo was taken in Bora Bora, French Polynesia. Shakur also shared another photo of the same scene, taken at a different moment, also naming the people seen on the boat.

Logically Facts has reached out to Shakur to confirm the exact location of the photo and this fact-check will be updated if and when we receive a response.

The viral image was posted by Karl Shakur on Instagram in July 2018. (Source:Instagram)

We also found that a website called ‘Tahiti Tourisme’ used the same photo and said that it showed Mount Otemanu, a mountain in Bora Bora, in the background. This website also credited the photo to Shakur. The mountain ranges captured in the viral photos also matched visuals of Mount Otemanu shared on stock image websites, Flickr and Getty Images. 

A reverse-image search on the fourth photo posted by Sehwag took us to several travel-related websites and pages claiming that the visuals were of Ko Kham island in Thailand. We also found an image posted on the website of the Tourism Authority of Thailand which showed visuals very similar to the photo shared by Sehwag. The website also identified the location as Ko Kham island.

Comparison of the image by Tourism Thailand and the viral image (Source:Tourism Thailand, X)

Visuals of Ko Kham island available on Google Maps also show that the shape of the island, the beach, and the pier match those captured in Sehwag’s photo.

Post with four images

We found that all of the images in the first post of the viral thread are from the Maldives and not from Lakshadweep. Using reverse image search and clues from the internet, we were able to geolocate all the images to the Maldives. 

The first image is of a resort, Adaaran Prestige Vadoo, located south of the Maldivian capital Malé. Both the shape of the island and the layout of the sea villas seen on Google Maps matched the visuals from the viral image. A narrow bridge or a path on the sea leading to another set of villas could also be spotted in both.

Comparison between viral image and Google Maps images of Adaaran Prestige Vadoo. (Source: Google Maps, Pexels)

The second image is of the Centara Grand Island Resort & Spa in the Maldives. Here too, the shape of the island and the layout of the resort’s sea villas matched the visuals from Google Maps.

Comparison between viral image and Google Maps images of Centara Grand Island Resort & Spa in Maldives. (Source: Google Maps, X)

For the third image, we found a Forbes article from 2017 that carried a similar photo, attributing it to the Baros Maldives Resort. 

After cross-checking the latest visuals of the island resort on Google Maps, we found that the shape of the island and other geographical features also match, although the number of huts has increased and their arrangement has changed. 

Comparison between viral image and images of Baros Maldives Resort shared by Forbes magazine. (Source: Forbes, X)

We were also able to geolocate the fourth image in the post to W Maldives, Fesdu Island North Ari Atoll. Once again, the distinct layout of the resort’s sea villas along with the island matched the visuals from Google Maps.

Comparison between the viral image and Google Maps images of W Maldives. (Source:X, Google Maps)

Union Minister of Earth Sciences Kiren Rijiju also shared a post with two images with the hashtags #ExploreIndianIslands  "#Lakshdweep" (sic) #DekhoApnaDesh, and #IncredibleIndia. However, while one image showed Bora Bora in French Polynesia, several social media users pointed out that the other one was Maldives. Rijiju has since deleted his post but an archived version can be viewed here.

The verdict
Our research shows that multiple images shared by social media users as visuals from Lakshadweep or other locations in India are actually from different international destinations.  Therefore, we have marked the claim that these photos show visuals from India as false. 

(Update: This story has been updated to include a fact-check of Virender Sehwag’s X post purporting to show various locations in India.)