The Bangur Nagar Police have arrested a Bengali film producer wanted in a fraud case worth nearly ₹1.58 crore. The accused, identified as Shyamsundar Swapnakumar Dey (47), was produced before the court after his arrest. The court has remanded him to police custody till 26 September.
According to the police, Dey, along with his associates Sarathee Sujitkumar Guha and Netai Babulal Mondal, duped a film and television actress by luring her with investment opportunities in OTT film projects.
Actress Pooja Banerjee, who resides in Malad with her family and has acted in several Hindi, Bhojpuri, and Tamil serials and films such as Tujh Sang Preet Lagai Sajna, Kumkum Bhagya and the Tamil film Veedu Theda, was the victim in this case.
In April 2025, Dey approached Banerjee and her husband Kunal Verma with a proposal to invest in the broadcasting rights of 16 upcoming films on an OTT platform, promising their release on Viacom 18 OTT. Claiming high financial returns, he persuaded the couple to collaborate with his company.
Falling for the offer, Banerjee and Verma floated their own company, Shadow Films, and signed an agreement with Dey’s firm. Between 9 April and 25 May 2025, they invested ₹1.68 crore in the project.
However, Dey and his partners failed to deliver the promised OTT rights. Instead, they allegedly misappropriated the money for personal use. When Banerjee demanded a refund, Dey returned only ₹10 lakh and later stopped responding to her.
Following repeated evasions, Banerjee filed a complaint with Bangur Nagar Police, who registered a case of cheating and misappropriation against Dey and his two partners. All three were declared wanted accused.
A special police team later tracked down and detained Shyamsundar Dey from Kolkata, where he was found hiding. During interrogation, he confessed to the fraud.
Investigations revealed that this is not Dey’s first offence. Earlier, he was booked in Kolkata for cheating businessman Manish Singhania of nearly ₹2.75 crore under the guise of OTT investment. This makes the Mumbai case the second major fraud registered against him.
Police officials confirmed that further interrogation is underway to trace the involvement of his partners and the money trail.