Mumbai: The Chembur police have registered a case against five individuals for allegedly defrauding 25 artists, including well-known celebrities Ankita Lokhande, Aayush Sharma, and Adrija Roy, of nearly ₹1.50 crore. The case was filed following a complaint by a celebrity manager.
According to the police, the complainant, Andher Roshan Binder (48), runs a company that provides celebrities for events and advertisements. In July 2024, he received a call from a person claiming to require 25 artists for an energy drink brand advertisement. The accused initially sent a receipt showing a ₹10 lakh advance payment, but no actual funds were transferred. They then instructed Binder to bring the artists to a party in Dadar.
The event was attended by nearly 100 celebrities, including Arjun Bijlani, Abhishek Bajaj, and Harsh Rajput. Out of these, 25 were selected for the advertisement, with a total agreed payment of ₹1.32 crore. The accused later sent a photo of a ₹15 lakh cheque as a payment guarantee, promising that the amount would soon be credited to Binder’s account. Trusting this, Binder proceeded with the advertisement shoot, and the content was uploaded on social media. The accused assured that all payments would be made within 35 days.
However, police reports reveal that at the Dadar event, two cheques—one for ₹2 lakh and another for ₹90,000—issued to the artists bounced. When questioned, the accused claimed that ₹22.5 lakh had been transferred from Dubai per foreign exchange regulations. However, even after two days, no money was credited to the complainant’s account.
Additionally, a ₹6.5 lakh cheque issued for actress Tejasswi Prakash and a ₹1.25 lakh cheque for Adrija Roy also bounced. On October 18, 2024, the accused issued two more cheques—one for ₹35 lakh and another for ₹45 lakh—promising payment within two days. Believing this assurance, Binder paid ₹35 lakh in advance to actors Jay Bhanushali, Bhumika Gurung, Ankita Lokhande, Aayush Sharma, Sana Sultan, Kushal Tandon, Adrija Roy, and Abhishek Bajaj. However, the ₹80 lakh cheque issued by the accused also bounced.
In total, ₹1.32 crore was defrauded from the artists, along with ₹16.91 lakh from Binder’s personal funds. Following Binder’s complaint, the Chembur police registered a case against five individuals, including a resident of Madhya Pradesh. Further investigations are underway.
