DigitEye India Fact Checkers
Amid several controversies on B.R. Ambedkar, architect of the Constitution of India, an image showing an old black-and-white photo of people in a conference room is being shared with an audio clip accompanying it. The claim says that it was the original voice of Ambedkar from the Second Round Table Conference held in London in 1931, speaking about Indian democracy and the oppressed classes.
अत्यंत दुर्मिळ…. डॉ.बाबासाहेब आंबेडकरांचा मूळ आवाज (दुसरी गोलमेज परिषद, लंडन, १९३१)
कृपया ऐका….. खूप छान अनुभूती आहे.
Very rare to find it…. The Original Voice of Babasaheb Dr. B R Ambedkar (2nd Round Table Conference, London, 1931)
Pl listen….. It’s a great feeling. pic.twitter.com/Af07vRsyOU— subhash desai (@subhash30679912) December 6, 2024
Please take a look at similar posts shared on X in July 2024 here and here.
FACT-CHECK
Digiteye India team took it up owing to its sensitivity amid growing controversies over Ambedkar in the country, following requests for fact-checking the same. When searched on Google Reverse Image Search, the old photo used was indeed the one from the Second Round Table Conference, held in London from 7 September to 1 December 1931, where Mahatma Gandhi and British Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald, besides B.R. Ambedkar, were present.
While searching for the audio clips of Ambedkar, we could locate an interview given to BBC by B.R. Ambedkar in 1955.
However, the voice was different from the one used in the X post. Hence, further search in Google for other resources revealed that a film titled ‘Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar’ was released on December 15, 2000. Directed by Jabbar Patel, the film features Malayalam actor Mammootty, and the English version is available on YouTube here:
We could locate the original sound track of the claim to 1 hour and 36 minutes timestamp in the video, where he was referring to “the depressed classes of India” which matches with the voice of the lead actor Mammootty’s voice. Hence, film’s audio clip has been shared as rare voice of B.R. Ambedkar who was delivering a speech at the Second Round-Table Conference in London.
Claim: ‘Listen to the original voice of B.R. Ambedkar’ from the Second Round Table Conference held in London in 1931 on the oppressed classes in India.
Conclusion: Misrepresentation. The voice of actor Mammootty in the film ‘Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar’ has been shared as rare voice of B.R. Ambedkar.
Rating: Misrepresentation — 
