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Five people have been charged by Mumbai’s Chembur Police with defrauding more than twenty-four Bollywood celebrities. After forcing musicians to promote an energy drink, the accused—Tanish Cheda, Manu Srivastava, Faisal Rafiq, Abdul, and Ritik Panchal—allegedly neglected to pay them. An estimated ₹1.5 crore is the total sum that has not been paid. Following a police inquiry and a complaint by celebrity manager Roshan Gary, the fraud was discovered.
Celebrity Manager Alleges Rs 1.5 Crore Fraud
In July 2024, celebrity endorsement professional Roshan Binder was approached by someone looking for 25 artists to promote an energy drink. The accused initially promised a ₹10 lakh advance, even showing a receipt as proof, but no money was received. Binder was later asked to bring celebrities to a promotional event in Dadar.
Bounced Cheques and False Promises
The event featured celebrities like Arjun Bijlani, Abhishek Bajaj, and Harsh Rajput. A total payment of ₹1.32 crore was promised. Binder was shown a ₹15 lakh cheque as a guarantee and proceeded with the project. The celebrities posted promotional content on their social media accounts under the condition that payments would be cleared within 35 days. The energy drink company involved was Sky 63.
However, payments never materialized. Two cheques—one for ₹2 lakh and another for ₹90,000—bounced. Later, Binder was told ₹22.5 lakh had been transferred from Dubai, but no money was received. Actress Tejasswi Prakash’s ₹6.5 lakh cheque and Adrija Roy’s ₹1.25 lakh cheque also bounced. On October 18, 2024, the accused issued two more cheques of ₹35 lakh and ₹45 lakh, assuring deposits within two days, but they too bounced.
The accused made partial payments of ₹35 lakh to stars like Jay Bhanushali, Bhumika Gurung, Ankita Lokhande, Ayush Sharma, Sana Sultan, Kushal Tandon, and Adrija Roy. However, a cheque for ₹80 lakh also bounced, adding to the financial losses.
Celebrities Yet to Receive Their Payments
The following celebrities have reportedly not been paid: Ankita Lokhande, Ayush Sharma, Abhishek Bajaj, Adrija Roy, Basir Ali, Niyati Fatnani, Parth Kalnawat, Samarth Jurel, Helly Shah, Kashish, Ankit Gupta, Mohit Malik, Vijayendra Kumeria, Jannat Zubair, Tejasswi Prakash, Karan Kundrra, Mickey Sharma, Ridhima Pandit, Jay Bhanushali, Kushal Tandon, Vibha Anand, Sana Sultan, Bhumika Gurung, Dhvani Pawar, and Sana Makbul.
