Fact Check: Viral Video Of Sunita Williams Discussing Taking Religious Items To Space Dates Back To 2013

New Delhi (Vishvas News): A video of astronaut Sunita Williams addressing a press conference is going viral on social media, where she mentions taking the Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads, and a Ganesh idol to space. Many users are sharing it with the claim that it is recent and linked to her return after being stuck in space for nine months.

Vishvas News investigated and found the claim to be misleading. The video dates back to 2013, during Williams’ visit to the National Science Centre in Delhi.

What is in the viral post?

Facebook user ‘Acharya Hari Krishna Shukla – BJP‘ shared the viral video (archive link) on March 23, 2025, with the caption, “Sunita Williams credits Bhagwad Gita & Upanishads for her safe return. She stayed in space for 9 months.” In the Video Sunita Williams can be heard saying “I really appreciate my Indian heritage and was glad I could bring part of it with me to space. Ganesh has always been in my house, everywhere I’ve lived I had Ganesh and so he had to come with me to space of course. And Indian food, you can never get enough of Indian food. I always make sure I have samosas in space with me. Bhagavad Gita, this last time I brought a small copy interpretation of Upanishad with me. I also brought along the Bhagavad Gita, the Odyssey and I thought that was also quite appropriate to be in space and have those types of things to reflect and read.”

Investigation

To begin our investigation, we carefully checked the video. In the clip, Williams looks younger compared to her latest appearances. To verify further, we conducted a Google Lens search using screenshots from the viral video. We found the full video uploaded on the NDTV’s YouTube channel on April 2, 2013, where, the segment featured in the viral clip begins at the 40-second mark.

We also found various news reports from 2013 mentioning Williams’ India visit.

We conducted a keyword search to find any recent reports about a press conference involving Williams after her return but found no credible sources or news reports mentioning any such press conference.  

To verify further, we contacted aerospace expert Girish Linganna. He confirmed that the viral video is from 2013 when Sunita Williams visited the National Science Centre, New Delhi, where she interacted with students during her India visit.

Instagram user ‘Acharya Hari Krishna Shukla – BJP’, who shared the viral video with the false claim, has about 31000 followers.

Conclusion: Vishvas News’ investigation revealed that the viral video of Sunita Williams carrying religious items to space dates back to 2013, not recent. It was recorded during her India visit. 

Tags

• NASA
• Sunita WIliams return
• Sunita Williams