In a strange and unexpected development, Gujarati police have found fake Indian banknotes with the picture of Bollywood star Anupam Kher on them rather than Mahatma Gandhi.
During a raid in Surat on September 22, 2024, Ahmedabad police seized the bogus notes, worth a total of $193,000.
Social media users have reacted to the strange nature of the scam with a mixture of astonishment and humour following the incident.
Authorities uncovered the counterfeit activity when they found a Surat facility that manufactured counterfeit money.
Four people were taken into custody for the fraud.
The bogus notes, which featured Anupam Kher's face rather than Gandhi's, were part of a bigger plot to trick Mehul Thakkar, a local gold dealer, into swapping 2,100 grams of gold for the counterfeit notes.
Two people had approached bullion broker Mehul Thakkar in Navrangpura to buy gold. He reported this to the police.
On September 24, Thakkar dispatched one of his staff members to CG Road to finalize the transaction.
26 bundles of cash sealed with fake State Bank of India tape were given over by the fraudsters. As the worker counted the cash, the scammers said they still needed to get $36,000.
The employee looked through the bundles and found that the notes were fake, but before he could take action, the suspects had already left the area.
Not only did the fake notes bear Anupam Kher's picture, but they also read "Resole Bank of India" rather than the accurate "Reserve Bank of India."
Rajdeep Nukum, the Commissioner of Police in Ahmedabad, disclosed that the offenders were motivated by the widely viewed web series Farzi, starring Shahid Kapoor, about a fraud guy who makes a lot of money by printing fake banknotes.
Anupam Kher himself took to Instagram to address the problem as word of the scam spread.
Anupam Kher humorously addressed the matter through the sharing of a video, expressing astonishment and enjoyment that his likeness had been used on the fake bank notes.
The actor's post went viral very fast, and lots of people commented on how they felt about the unexpected turn of events.
Despite all of this, Anupam Kher is getting ready for the premiere of his next movie, Emergency, which is directed by Kangana Ranaut. However, there are currently issues with the movie's certification.
The picture will not be released until specific changes are made, according to the Central Board of Picture Certification (CBFC).
The next hearing is set for September 30, 2024, since the producers of the movie have asked for more time to evaluate the changes.
