First, the disclaimer. The video in circulation is AI-generated – entirely fictional, produced by pixels with a sense of humour.
It shows Congress dynast and Leader of the Opposition, Shri Rahul Gandhi ji, seated inside the party war room – known more popularly as the ‘lie factory’. Beside him sits the ever-vigilant Congress spokesperson, Supriya Srinate. Both are glued to a live television feed.
On screen: Prime Minister Narendra Modi receiving sustained applause in the Israeli Parliament, the Knesset. The chants of ‘Modi, Modi’ echo through the chamber.
The effect on the war room is immediate. Rahul Baba’s pulse rate rises. Supriya’s composure flickers. Global admiration, when directed elsewhere, can be deeply destabilising.
Export-quality protest
Rahul baba concedes – with visible reluctance – that the visit appears to have boosted India’s image. This, plainly, is unacceptable.
Supriya’s exasperation is logistical. If only the Congress’s self-styled babbar shers could be airlifted to Tel Aviv to stage one of their baniyan protests – perhaps a symbolic strip routine, as previewed at Bharat Bhavanam during the AI Summit before startled international guests.
But geography, visas, and international decorum intervene. One cannot franchise theatrics abroad at short notice. Helplessness settles like Delhi smog.
The teleprompter crisis
The video then flashes what purports to be a tweet from Supriya:
India is the Motherland
Israel is Fatherland
What on earth does that even mean???
The prime minister of India on the world stage – despite reading from the teleprompter.
One must admire the hierarchy of outrage. Teleprompters, apparently, are now the gravest threat to civilisation.
Reading from a teleprompter, Supriyaji, is generally considered preferable to addressing a school student’s question about preparing for an AI-driven future – and responding with a meditation on increasing factory productivity. Clarity, even when assisted by technology, has its uses.
The walkout that walked out too early
Another tweet, this one in Hindi by Ranvijay Singh, solemnly claims that as Modi’s name was announced in the Israeli Parliament, the opposition staged a walkout.
Reality, tiresome as ever, intrudes. The protest was directed at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Opposition MPs had exited before Modi even entered the chamber.
When the Indian prime minister walked in, applause filled the hall. Members scrambled for selfies. The only thing walking out was the narrative. Fact-checking, clearly, is optional.
Robots, microprocessors, and panic
There was also an imaginative flourish from the Congress Kerala X handle – involving a robot and a microprocessor in the same video. The claim was so technologically adventurous that it belongs more comfortably in speculative fiction than political discourse. It requires no serious engagement.
Mercifully, the AI-generated war room did not feature Sonia, Priyanka, Jairam Ramesh or Pawan Khera. Had they materialised in that pixelated command centre, the baloney output might have strained global supply chains.
In the end, the AI video may be fake. But the anxiety it caricatures feels authentic. Some leaders worry about geopolitics. Others worry about applause.
And somewhere between Motherland and Fatherland, the teleprompter continues to read – calmly, coherently, and without blabbering.
