Around 150 Chinese influencers and social media streamers have been operating in Bangladesh for the past two months, allegedly producing videos that portray slums in Dhaka as neighbourhoods in Delhi and circulate misleading claims about India, including narratives about tea made from cow urine, according to a report by leading Bangladeshi newspaper Prothom Alo, as reported in OpIndia.
The activity has raised concerns about attempts to use social media content to malign India’s image by misrepresenting footage from another country as scenes from India.
Chinese Influencers Portray Dhaka Slums As Delhi Neighbourhoods
According to the Prothom Alo report, Chinese content creators have been filming in several parts of Bangladesh, particularly in Dhaka, and uploading videos on short-video platforms and social media.
One of the tactics involves filming densely populated slums and informal settlements in Dhaka and presenting the footage as visuals from Delhi. By misidentifying the location, the videos create the impression that the scenes of poverty and poor living conditions are from India’s capital.
The content also includes claims about cow-urine tea, a narrative that has previously circulated on social media in attempts to portray Indian cultural and dietary practices negatively.
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The campaign has attracted attention because of the scale of Chinese participation and the pattern of using Bangladeshi locations to manufacture misleading narratives about India.
Chinese Nationals Filming In Uttara, Residents Raise Concerns
The activities have also raised concerns among local residents in Bangladesh.
Residents have questioned why large numbers of Chinese nationals are filming such content in different parts of the country and alleged that their complaints have not prompted adequate police monitoring.
According to the OpIndia report, police personnel at a local station acknowledged seeing Chinese nationals filming videos in various parts of Uttara, Dhaka. However, officers said they were unaware of the purpose behind the recordings.
Attempts by the police to establish what the Chinese nationals were filming have been hampered by language barriers and the visitors’ reluctance to engage with them. Their apparent irritation when questioned has also discouraged officers from pursuing further inquiries.
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