Monsoon has picked up pace in several states across the country. The national capital, Delhi, has also witnessed heavy rainfall in recent days, leading to waterlogging in many areas. Meanwhile, a video is going viral on social media. In the video, a monitor lizard is seen suddenly attacking a young man who is using a mobile phone in a narrow lane. After the attack, the panicked youth throws the monitor lizard away from himself and starts running. The monitor lizard is then seen chasing him. Many social media users are sharing this video, claiming that it is an incident from Delhi.
Sharing this video on X (formerly Twitter), a user named Shivansh wrote, “A monitor lizard was spotted in the narrow lanes of Delhi, leaving locals both surprised and curious. A huge monitor lizard was seen in the narrow streets of Delhi, causing a stir in the area. When a guest from the forest reaches the city streets, everyone is left surprised.”( English Translation)
Sharing the viral video on Facebook, a user named Narayan Singh Rawat wrote, “Shocking video: A massive monitor lizard was seen in the narrow streets of Delhi, causing a stir in the area. When a guest from the forest entered the city.”
Apart from this, several other social media users have also shared the viral video of the monitor lizard, claiming it to be from Delhi, which can be seen here.
Fact Check:
During the investigation of the viral video, the DFRAC team found that this is not a video of a real incident involving a monitor lizard attacking a youth in Delhi; instead, this video has been created using Artificial Intelligence (AI). After analyzing the viral video, AI expert Mayank Sharma also confirmed it to be an AI-generated video.
Our team closely observed the viral video during the investigation. We found that at the 2- and 3-second marks in the video, a mobile phone is visible in the youth’s hand, but as soon as he bends down to pick up the monitor lizard, the mobile suddenly disappears from his hand. However, there is no visual of any phone falling there during this timeframe in the video.”
The viral video shows another sign that is often seen in AI-generated videos. The events in the video are presented in such a way as if they were pre-planned and filmed from different camera angles. It also features cinematic shots like close-ups and long shots, which seem unnatural for such sudden real-life incidents.
For further investigation, we searched the keywords “monitor lizard Delhi” on Google and checked the News section. We did not find any recent news reports about a monitor lizard attacking anyone in Delhi. However, we found a News18 Hindi report dated September 6, 2025, about a rare African monitor lizard being found at the Mayur Vihar-1 Metro Station. We also found a Navbharat Times report covering the same incident. In addition, we found media reports by ETV Bharat dated September 12, 2024, and Amar Ujala dated August 11, 2018, related to monitor lizards.
For a detailed analysis of the video, our team contacted AI expert Mayank Sharma. Mayank stated that several indicators in the viral video suggest that it was created using Artificial Intelligence (AI). He explained that the video was shot from multiple angles, whereas close-ups, long shots, and cinematic transitions are not typically seen in sudden, spontaneous events. Additionally, there are several unnatural anomalies in the movements of both the monitor lizard and the young man. Their speed, movement, and interactions do not match real-world physical behavior at several points, which is a common characteristic of AI-generated videos.
Conclusion:
DFRAC’s fact-check confirms that the viral video of a monitor lizard attacking a youth is not from a real incident in Delhi. The video is AI-generated. Therefore, the claim being shared by social media users is misleading.
