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Fact Check
A viral video shows an escalator collapsing inside BM Habitat Mall, Mysuru, killing several people.
The viral video claiming an escalator collapse at Mysore’s BM Habitat Mall is not real—it was artificially generated using AI.
A video circulating on X claims that several people died after an escalator collapsed inside BM Habitat Mall in Mysuru.
Archived links of the posts can be read here, here, and here.
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According to a post on X Express Bengaluru, “Sunil, 30, a technician from Hunsur taluk who worked at the mall, and Chandru, 25, a Mysuru resident, died Monday evening after falling from a four-storey shopping mall in Mysuru during an advertisement board removal operation.”
This confirms the deaths were accidental falls during maintenance work, not an escalator collapse.
Kannada outlets such as Prajavani and Udayakala, also reported that the deaths occurred during board removal and made no mention of an escalator collapse. Their coverage supports that the viral claim is false.
To verify the viral footage, the AI-powered tool Was it Ai was used. The analysis showed that the viral video did not match BM Habitat Mall’s interiors or layout. Importantly, the tool confirmed that the footage was AI-generated.
We reached out to the Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU), which includes Newschecker among its members, for further insights. Using the tool AI or not, they analysed multiple keyframes from the video and determined that it was AI-generated with confidence scores of 92% and 81%, respectively.
Based on the findings of our investigation, the video being shared as an escalator collapse at Mysore’s BM Habitat Mall has been found to be false. It was created using AI.
This article was originally published by Newschecker Kannada and can be read here.
FAQ
Q1. Did an escalator collapse at BM Habitat Mall, Mysuru?
No. Authorities and media reports confirmed no such incident occurred.
Q2. What actually happened at the mall?
Two workers — Sunil (30) and Chandru (25) — died after falling from the fourth floor while removing an advertisement board.
Q3. Was the viral video from BM Habitat Mall?
No. AI verification using WasIt showed the video did not match the mall’s interiors.
Q4. Was the viral video AI-generated?
Yes. Multiple AI detection tools—including AI or Not and Was It AI—have confirmed that the video was likely generated using artificial intelligence.
Our Sources
Report by Prajavani, Dated: September 8, 2025
Report by Udayakala, Dated: September 9, 2025
X post byExpress Bangalore, Dated: September 9, 2025
Was it Ai
AI or not
Analysis by Deepfakes Analysis Unit
Altered Photo/Video
