Tani Laila, daughter of the acclaimed South Asian vocalist Runa Laila, has called upon fans to report social media accounts propagating malicious, artificial intelligence-generated death rumours regarding her mother. The appeal follows a wave of synthetic videos and doctored imagery online, which falsely claimed the iconic singer was “battling for her life.”
Writing from the United States where she is staying with her family, Tani expressed deep anger over the spread of deceptive content. She confirmed that her mother remains in good health, strongly condemning digital content creators who manufacture sensationalist hoaxes using AI technology simply to harvest views and ad revenue.
“I am truly annoyed and fed up seeing these posts, AI-generated YouTube videos and fake news being spread just to make a small amount of money,” Tani stated. “I will personally start reporting these types of content, one by one, until these idiots stop this nonsense.”
Reflecting on her mother’s six-decade musical career, Tani lamented the sheer lack of respect directed toward a figure who has dedicated her life to the arts. Runa Laila’s extensive repertoire spans Bengali, Urdu, and Hindi music, earning her generational recognition across South Asia and beyond.
“My mother has devoted six decades of her life to serving music,” Tani wrote. “Yet people continue to disrespect her in this way even now — what an utter shame and humiliation this is for us!”
Clarifying the situation directly to fans, Tani reiterated that the claims regarding her mother’s declining health were unfounded. “My mother is completely healthy and alive; no one has died, nor is she on the verge of death. These are all videos and images created using AI,” she added, urging followers to take a proactive stance. “It is no longer tolerable. Those who follow Runa Laila, please report such accounts.”
The proliferation of accessible generative AI tools has made fabricating convincing audiovisual media increasingly effortless. Voice synthesisers and deepfake algorithms allow bad actors to create realistic, highly deceptive stories about public figures, making independent verification crucial before sharing content online.
Far from being incapacitated, the veteran artist maintains an active calendar of public performances. Runa Laila recently headlined two major concerts in Australia and led a solo musical programme hosted by the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy in Dhaka. Her family reaffirms that all recent claims concerning her health are false, advising the public to rely solely on verified channels.
