Celebrity Scam in Mumbai : The Chembur police have registered a case against the owners of an energy drink company after a well-known celebrity management firm alleged a massive fraud involving 25 celebrities.
According to the complaint filed by Roshan Bhinder, a 48-year-old event and celebrity manager from Andheri, the accused Tanish Chhedja, Manu Srivastava, Faisal Rafiq, Abdul, and Hrithik Panchal approached her in July 2024 with a lucrative offer. They sought 25 celebrities for a promotional campaign, initially promising an advance payment of ₹10 lakh, which never materialized.
Celebrity Scam in Mumbai
Bhinder claimed that the accused convinced her to bring artists to a Dadar-based promotional party, attended by 100 actors and influencers. From this gathering, 25 celebrities were shortlisted, and a total payment of ₹1.32 crore was agreed upon. To establish credibility, the accused allegedly sent Bhinder a fake cheque image of ₹15 lakh.
The campaign proceeded as planned, and promotional content was uploaded on social media, with the assurance that payments would be cleared within 35 days. However, when cheques of ₹2 lakh and ₹90,000 bounced, suspicions grew. The accused then claimed that ₹22.5 lakh had been transferred from Dubai, but no funds ever reached Bhinder.
The fraud escalated when, on October 18, 2024, the accused issued two more cheques of ₹35 lakh and ₹45 lakh, both of which bounced, causing Bhinder severe financial distress. Having already made advance payments of ₹35 lakh to several celebrities, Bhinder suffered total losses of over ₹1.32 crore, along with an additional ₹16.91 lakh from her personal funds.
To keep the victims from panicking, the accused issued two more cheques on October 18, 2024—one for Rs 35 lakh and another for Rs 45 lakh—promising that the money would be credited within two days.
Trusting their word, Binder took matters into his own hands and paid Rs 35 lakh from his own pocket to actors like Jay Bhanushali, Bhumika Gurung, Ankita Lokhande, Aayush Sharma, Sana Sultan, Kushal Tandon, Adrija Roy, and Abhishek Bajaj. But once again, when the Rs 80 lakh cheque from the accused bounced.
The Chembur police are currently investigating the case, and efforts are underway to track down the accused.
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