A video of a wounded woman soldier and a male soldier trying to wake her up went viral on social media. Sharing the video, users claimed that the video shows the first Indian woman soldier, Kiran Shekhawat, who was martyred in the ongoing conflict between India and Pakistan.
However, as we investigated, we came to know that the claim was misleading. The viral video is from the Ukrainian song “Brothers”. Here’s the fact check.
Fact Check
We started our investigation by conducting a relevant keyword search to learn about Kiran Shekhawat. This led us to an article on Lt Kiran Shekhawat, published on a website.
According to the article, Lt Kiran Shekhawat was the first Indian naval officer who was martyred in the line of duty on 24 March 2015 in the Indian Navy Dornier crash.
We found a report published on NDTV on 26 March 2015 that read, “The Indian Navy Dornier that crashed during a night sortie on Tuesday had claimed the life of a woman officer. The body of Lieutenant Kiran Shekhawat – the first Indian woman officer to die in the line of duty – was recovered today.
Lieutenant Shekhawat, 27, was commissioned into the Navy in 2010. She was training to be an Observer – an officer in charge of all sensors on board a surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft.
Early this morning, the wreckage of the Dornier was found about 60 m under the sea at south-west of Goa coast. The body of Lieutenant Shekhawat was found inside the fuselage of the aircraft.
“Lieutenant Shekhawat was unable to come out of aircraft,” a senior officer said. The cause of the crash – a first by a Dornier — will be determined by Board of Inquiry, he added.
Lieutenant Shekhawat’s father retired from the Navy as Master Chief Petty Officer and her brother is also sailor with the Navy. Her husband is also a naval officer and an instructor in the Naval Academy in Ezhimala in Kerala. The two had married about two years ago.
“She was extremely focused and disciplined officer,” a senior Navy officer told NDTV.
Lieutenant Shekhawat was also part of the Navy Woman Officer Contingent – the first ever all-woman officer contingent – that participated in this year’s Republic Day Parade.”
Another report can be read here.
This makes it clear that Lt Kiran Shekhawat was the first Indian woman officer to die in the line of duty.
Moving forward, to learn about the viral video, we took some screenshots from it and conducted a reverse image search. This led us to a Ukrainian website “voxukraine“, where an image similar to the screenshots from the viral video could be seen. According to the website, “This is a video of combat medic Vitsyk, who was filming a clip dedicated to brotherhood during wartime on TikTok.” The video is a BTS from the song “Brothers”.
In this report, we found the full version of the video, which was released on 24 February 2025. From the timestamp 1:30, we saw a clip similar to the viral video. The description of the video read, “This song is about true brotherhood, which is born in battle. About those who became a family in war, who stand by each other in the most difficult moments. The video was shot with the participation of Ukrainian military personnel, in particular the defenders of Azovstal who were captured: Maryana Checheliuk, Asan Isenadzhiev, Mykyta Shastun, Oleksandr Bevz. We remember. We fight. We win.”
This makes it clear that the viral video doesn’t show the first on-duty Indian female martyr, Kiran Shekhawat. The video is from a Ukrainian song “Brothers” that was released on 24 February 2025.
Conclusion
From our investigation, we can say that the claim is misleading. Although Lt Kiran Shekhawat was the first Indian woman officer to sacrifice her life in the line of duty, the video doesn’t show Kiran Shekhawat. She was martyred in 2015. The video is from a Ukrainian song “Brothers” that was released on 24 February 2025.
Title:Video From A Ukrainian Song Going Viral As First Indian Woman Martyr Kiran Shekhawat.
Written By: Debanjana baishyaResult: Misleading
