A viral video on Instagram has nearly 2 million likes, with many people chiming in that it’s the most majestic thing they’ve ever seen. The underwater video shows a blue whale diving beneath the waves after surfacing for a breath. As the blue whale dives, a man swims alongside it, showing just how massive the marine mammal is compared to a human. It’s breathtaking. So much so that some people question if it’s even real.
A man who identifies himself as Laikko runs the Instagram account @layan_maldives. He posts incredible dive videos from the waters surrounding Maafushi, an island in the Maldives, which is within the Indian Ocean. Other posts on Laikko’s account link him to a company that operates tours off the coast of Maafushi, so it’s possible he’s a tour or dive guide.
Though Laikko doesn’t provide a lot of context about his mind-blowing video, he does label this moment as one of the best in his life.
Watch a man swimming alongside a blue whale, the largest animal on Earth, here:
Controversy
Besides people sharing awe and wonder, one of the top comment themes on this viral video is confusion. Since the video is vertical, at first, it looks like the whale is flying up into the air instead of diving down underwater. It’s trippy, according to many commenters.
Then, there are the folks who say this video can’t even be real. AI has become so advanced, in some cases, that it’s worth questioning whether the photos and videos you see online are fake. However, in this case, the verdict by and large is that this video is indeed real.
Can you imagine swimming with the largest animal on Earth? What do you think about this incredible video? Is it too incredible to be credible?