'Turbanmirchie' Influencer Held For Planting Fake Worm Reel, Demanding Rs 2 Lakh From Mulund Dairy Owner

Published 17 June 2026 · local

'Turbanmirchie' Influencer Held For Planting Fake Worm Reel, Demanding Rs 2 Lakh From Mulund Dairy Owner Published By, Last Updated: June 17, 2026, 14:02 IST

'Turbanmirchie' Influencer Held For Planting Fake Worm Reel, Demanding Rs 2 Lakh From Mulund Dairy Owner Published By, Last Updated: June 17, 2026, 14:02 IST Investigators found CCTV footage of Gujral's relative boasting at the Mulund shop that their reel had already destroyed another eatery's business. On June 7, Gujral allegedly uploaded a reel on Instagram, claiming a worm had been found in paneer purchased from the Mulund dairy shop. A Mumbai-based food and travel influencer with nearly 4 lakh followers has been arrested by the city’s crime branch for allegedly extorting a dairy shop owner in Mulund — threatening to “take him down" with negative reels unless he paid up. Randeep Gujral (40), who goes by the Instagram handle ‘turbanmirchie’ and describes himself as an IIM Indore alumnus and Creators Award nominee, was nabbed red-handed on Sunday and remanded to police custody till Thursday, according to Indian Express.

How Did Extortion Work? On June 7, Gujral allegedly uploaded a reel on his secondary Instagram account ‘Afternoon Times’ — which features local news and eatery exposés in Mulund and Thane — claiming a worm had been found in paneer purchased from the Mulund dairy shop, and falsely alleging that police had shut it down. He then allegedly demanded money from the shop owner in exchange for taking the video down and running positive promotions instead. How Did Police Catch Him? The shop owner approached the police, following which an FIR was registered at Mulund Police Station and the case handed to the crime branch. Officers then laid a trap — asking the victim to tell Gujral he would transfer Rs 50,000 via UPI and hand over Rs 2 lakh in cash at a meeting on Sunday. “As the accused was taking the money from the victim, we caught him red-handed and placed him under arrest," DCP (Crime) Raj Tilak Roshan told Indian Express.

Could This Be Wider Racket? Investigators are now looking beyond this single case. CCTV footage from the dairy shop allegedly shows a relative of Gujral boasting that a reel on another eatery — reportedly a popular wada pav chain with multiple city branches — had brought that business down. Police are now examining whether the same extortion playbook was used there. “A few relatives of the accused also have social media accounts featuring similar content. We are checking if others are involved and whether there is an extortion racket at play," an officer from Unit V of the crime branch told IE. On his primary ‘turbanmirchie’ page, Gujral reviews restaurants and five-star hotels across Maharashtra and Goa — content that has racked up thousands of views and, it now appears, may have given him significant leverage over the businesses he covered. News18 Newsletter Handpicked stories, in your inbox A newsletter with the best of our journalism submit About the Author News Desk The News Desk is a team of passionate editors and writers who break and analyse the most important events unfolding in India and abroad.