Mumbai, October 29: Did a man in Pench pat a tiger on the head after mistaking it for a stray cat and give it alcohol? Social media was flooded with shock and amusement after a viral post claimed that Raju Patel, a 52-year-old labourer, encountered a Bengal tiger after a late-night card game on October 4, 2025. The post described how Patel, allegedly tipsy from homemade liquor, mistook the tiger for a large cat and calmly stroked its head, even offering it alcohol from his bottle.

The story went on to say that forest officials later tranquillised and safely guided the tiger back to Pench Tiger Reserve, while Patel became a "local legend." The claim, shared by X user Mukul Dekhane, featured a video showing a man petting a tiger and offering it a drink. The clip quickly went viral, garnering over 592K views and sparking widespread disbelief and laughter across platforms. Fact Check: Did Escaped Monkeys in Mississippi Carry Hepatitis C, Herpes and COVID? Tulane University Refutes Claim.

User Claims Drunk Man Petted a Bengal Tiger and Offered it Alcohol in Pench

Drunk Man Pets Tiger and Gives it Alcohol in Pench, Claims X Post (Photo Credits: X/ @dekhane_mukul)

Fact Check: Drunk Man Didn’t Pet a Bengal Tiger and Gave it Alcohol in Pench

However, no credible news outlet or forest department has reported such an incident. A closer look reveals that the post originates from a parody account. The user’s bio reads, "Fun ke liye kuchh bhee karega | RT is not an endorsement | Never explains jokes", a clear sign that the content is intended as humour, not fact. The caption of the viral post ends with laughing emojis, further suggesting that it was meant as a joke, not a real event. Did Scientists Detect Fibonacci Pulse Patterns From 3I/ATLAS? NASA and SETI Debunk Viral Claim of Alien Message From Interstellar Comet.

Authorities in Madhya Pradesh or Pench Tiger Reserve have issued no statement confirming the event, and local journalists have found no record of it occurring. Netizens also noted that the video appears AI-generated, combining realistic visuals with fabricated storytelling. Hence, the viral claim of a man petting a tiger in Pench is completely Fake and digitally fabricated.

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Fact check

Is Viral Video of Drunk Man Petting Bengal Tiger and Giving Alcohol in Pench Real or Fake? Fact Check Debunks False Claims
Claim :

A viral X post claimed that Raju Patel, a drunk man from Pench, India, petted a Bengal tiger and offered it alcohol, mistaking it for a cat after a late-night card game.

Conclusion :

No such incident was reported by any credible source; the video was posted by a parody account and is likely AI-generated.

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(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 29, 2025 12:55 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).