The Reality Behind the Viral Video of a '188-Year-Old Man' Rescued from a Cave in India – Life & Style

A video purporting to show the rescue of a “188-year-old man” from a cave near Bengaluru, India, has gone viral, garnering over 34 million views on social media platform X.

The post, shared by the Concerned Citizen account, includes a 24-second clip of two men helping an elderly person with a hunched back, a white beard and a walking stick. The headline read: “This Indian was just found in a cave. He is said to be 188 years old. Crazy.”

This sensational claim sparked widespread discussion and intrigue, but fact-checkers quickly moved in to investigate. Reports soon clarified that the man in the video was Siyaram Baba, a Hindu saint from Madhya Pradesh, and not the 188-year-old as claimed.

Further investigation revealed that Siyaram Baba is around 110 years old, significantly younger than the viral claims suggested.

Social media platform X intervened by attaching a disclaimer to a viral post.

The message alerts viewers to the misinformation and states: “Misinformation! The older man is a Hindu saint named “Siyaram Baba” who lives in Madhya Pradesh, India. He’s about 110 years old.”

Data review group D-Intent Data also confirmed the inaccuracies, calling the video and its claims misleading. They noted: “A video showing people helping an elderly man was distributed with the false claim that a 188-year-old Indian man was discovered in a cave.” In reality, these claims are false; The man is a saint named ‘Siyaram Baba’ from Madhya Pradesh.”

Further confirmation came from an article in the Navbharat Times in July 2024, which identified Siyaram Baba as 109 years old at the time. The article highlighted that “he is a revered saint in Khargone district of Madhya Pradesh who is highly respected by the local community.”

Despite the video's rapid spread on social media, it was thoroughly debunked. Experts warn of the increasing prevalence of sensational and unverified claims on these platforms.

D-Intent Data warned about this trend, noting that influencers often share misleading information to gain attention. “Influencers distribute videos with fabricated claims to gain visibility on social media,” their analysis states.