A photo of people sitting on the floor to have a meal on banana leaves is being shared widely on social media with a claim that it shows people following ‘Bharatiya’ (Indian) culture in New Zealand. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of people in New Zealand following ‘Bharatiya’ (Indian) culture of sitting on the floor and eating in banana leaves.
Fact: The photo was taken in India, not New Zealand. The photo is related to ‘Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Dhanwantari Ashram’ in Kerala (India). Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the image was run through Yandex Reverse Image Search, a similar photo was found on a travel website. The website mentions that the photo is related to ‘Sivananda Ashram in Kerala’. The flooring, pillars, window design and ceiling etc. look the same in both the photos. Also, similar visuals can be seen in the Google Images of ‘Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Dhanwantari Ashram’, which is located at Trivandrum in Kerala (India). Few more photos of the same place can be found here and here.
To sum it up, the posted photo was taken at an ashram in India. It does not show people following Indian tradition in New Zealand.
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