I wanted to share a recent experience that turned out to be quite an eye-opener. It started simply enough when Deepti, a junior from our engineering college in Bangalore (we were in the same department), messaged me on Facebook. It’s been about 12 years since I graduated, so I barely remembered her, but I was happy to connect. We chatted for a few days, and then she asked for my phone number. I shared it. Soon, she began asking a lot about my business, Saurally Solar. I run a legitimate solar products manufacturing company with a strong e-commerce presence. Deepti then mentioned she was also involved in some kind of “e-commerce business.”


Naturally, I was curious. But when I asked for details, she was always very vague. Instead, she kept talking about her “international business trips” to places like Malaysia, Singapore, and Sri Lanka, posting photos on social media to show off. My imagination took the best of my intelligence. I even thought she was part of a smuggling gang that brought in luxury goods illigally and sold in India.


The Meeting and the Red Flags


Eventually, we met for coffee in Bangalore. The talk was mostly casual, but she made sure to understand my financial situation and hinted at a big “opportunity.” After some back and forth over a few months, she invited me to meet her “senior partner” for this “exciting e-commerce opportunity.” We met at a Starbucks on Lavelle Road. Deepti told me her senior partner was running late, supposedly due to another meeting. While waiting, another person from her team, Rakshit, joined us. He claimed to be a BITS Pilani graduate from the 2024 batch. Now, I’m not from BITS myself, but I have a few friends who are. So, I casually asked Rakshit about them. He seemed completely clueless about anyone from BITS, which instantly made me suspicious. It quickly became clear that his main job was just to talk up the senior partner who was still “on his way.” This was the first major red flag.
As I sat there, I also noticed something strange about the place. There were many other groups around us, all having similar intense “business meetings.” It felt like a common spot for these kinds of pitches.


The Senior Partner “Retired Lieutenant Commander” and His Pitch


Finally, Mr. Madhusudan made a rather grand entry. Deepti introduced him as her senior partner, and he claimed to be a retired Lieutenant Commander in the Indian Navy. To emphasize this, he was wearing a brooch of the Indian Navy logo on his blazer lapel. This detail really stood out. He started talking about general life stuff, how our families are, and if I wanted to give my parents and wife a “comfortable life.” He used the “poor dad, rich dad” story, which honestly didn’t match my situation at all since I run a successful company. He just kept talking, like a broken record, without really listening to me.


After about two hours of this, he came to the main point. He said if I was interested, I’d need to attend another 6-hour meeting. And after that, I would have to pay a significant amount – ₹4.25 lakhs. This payment, he said, would give me “membership to the platform,” “distribution rights,” and access to “onboard more distributors and earn commission.” during all this time, he never mentioned the name of the comapny, name of the platform, who owns the business marketplace or the platform. I have met and concluded business with many people. And these usually start with introduction to the company and individual. Mr. Madhusudan insistetin getting to know the person and mindset rather than the main business. Ofcourse, alignment of thought processes and goals play an important role in joint ventures and business deals, but thats not the only thing. This raided a lot of doubts and suspecion. After a long discussion, he then told me someone from their team would call me within 24 hours for my decision. He stressed on the urgency and told me there were others who were willing to join and there are limited spots.


My Decision and a Warning


The next morning, Deepti texted me. I directly asked her: “What is this, Deepti? What are you actually selling? Have you lost a lot of money in this, and are you just trying to recover it?” She quickly replied that she was “doing more than fine” and that “they work as a family.” I told her clearly that I would not be discussing business with her anymore and ended the conversation. One important thing I noticed throughout this entire experience: none of them ever gave me their last names. I have no way to trace Rakshit the BITS Pilani graduate or Mr. Madhusudan, the retired navy officer. This lack of transparency is a huge red flag.


I’m sharing this to caution my fellow college friends. Be very careful if an old connection suddenly reaches out with a vague “exciting opportunity.” Especially if it involves:

  • People making unverified claims about their backgrounds or prestigious colleges.
  • High-pressure tactics and a lack of transparency about the business.
  • Claiming high ranks or wearing symbols of respected institutions (like the Indian Navy) to gain trust.
  • A requirement to pay a large upfront sum just to “join” or “get access.”
  • A main focus on recruiting others, rather than selling actual products to real customers.
  • No one giving you their full names, making them untraceable.

Real businesses are open and clear. If something feels off, or too good to be true, it probably is. Stay sharp, and don’t fall for these kinds of traps. Of course, I don’t want to take the name of the company or the selling platform. If you Google MLM online platforms, you’ll get to know the name of the company I’m talking about. They claim to be direct selling e-commerce platform. But the majority of the money flows through onboarding distrutors under each other and selling distribution rights. There is no exclusivity for distribution. A registered distributor can recruit others as distributors under them. They will be called the downline and the recruiter becomes the upline, a systematic pyramid disguised as a legit e-commerce business. The money paid by the distributor goes into purchase of so called luxury goods of unknown origin and brands, distribution rights and access to the platform. The commission from these sales goes to all the up lines and the recruiter. Well, again a pyramid based commissions system.