In Golmaal, Shreyas Talpade made millions laugh, and with his portrayal of a deaf cricket prodigy in Iqbal, he inspired countless dreamers. For years, Alok Nath was the embodiment of Indian fatherhood, playing the nation's most lovable 'Babuji' for decades.
However, presently, both actors have been charged with a fraudulent scheme involving a Rs 5 crore investment that has resulted in the tragedy of more than 500 families in the Uttar Pradesh and Haryana regions.
The Loni Urban Multi-State Cooperative Society, which was established in 2016, enticed rural Indians with a seemingly impossible proposition: to double their money in just five years. The scheme advertised itself as being under the Ministry of Agriculture and having the backing of the Bollywood celebrities.
The brand ambassadors were Shreyas Talpade and Alok Nath who were roped in to spread the word by visiting villages and participating in promotional events to bring in more investors by gaining their confidence.
In a case like Baghpat's Babli, nothing but the celebrity endorsement could have persuaded her to invest so much money. Though what she did was quite risky, as an Anganwadi worker on a low income, she put Rs 1.90 lakh from her savings into the scheme because she saw a picture of Shreyas Talpade.
On the other hand, within these districts farmers were mortgaging their lands, small-time agents were pooling their resources, and working-class families were betting on their futures with what looked like a government-backed and celebrity-endorsed safe investment.
It is true that the society ran successfully for many years with all its scheduled payments being made. The month of November 2024 marked however a turning point. The transaction software was said to be mysteriously shutting down.
The payments stopping and 25 agents going missing without leaving any clues was what happened within the few weeks after that. Doors of the offices were closed, phones were disconnected, and an amount of over Rs 5 crore was lost.
In a hurry and filled with anxiety, of course, victims wanted to withdraw their money but what they found was nothing. Baghpat police received a complaint on the 7th of October 2025, naming 24 individuals as perpetrators among whom Shreyas Talpade and Alok Nath being the most prominent celebrity endorsers.
The complaint states that the victims were attracted through the trustworthiness of these well-known characters and then taken for a ride.
Even more, the revelation of this case is that these actors have been accused before and are still denying their involvement. Back in January 2025, both Shreyas and Alok Nath were implicated in another investment fraud case in Sonipat, Haryana, that revolved around Human Welfare Credit Cooperative Society. Two different states, two different scams, same celebrity faces, but different victims.
The Supreme Court with its decision in September 2025 temporarily stopped arresting the two actors. At the same time, 500 families are waiting for justice, while Shreyas Talpade is busy promoting his upcoming films and Alok Nath is consolidating his position in the industry.
The question which remains unanswered is, were they simply good-hearted endorsers or knew about it and used this scheme to gain the trust of the middle class?
