Where is Simran Bhogal from ‘Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare’ now?

The feature documentary about the real-life catfishing scandal is on Netflix now

The Netflix documentary Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare is streaming now, but where is Simran Bhogal now? Read on for all the info.

The feature film follows on from the Tortoise podcast series of the same name and tells the story of Kirat Assi, who fell in love with a man named Bobby Jandu, who she met online in 2010.

Assi spent much of the following decade immersed in an intense virtual relationship with Bobby, only for her perceptions to be devastated when she came to learn that the real identity of the man she was connected to was in fact Simran Bhogal, Assi’s own cousin.

The success of the podcast led to an array of interest in telling Assi’s story on screen, and Kirat eventually agreed to a deal with Netflix.

“It’s just sharing the story to a wider audience,” she explained about to Radio Times about her decision to agree to the film. “Lots of people don’t listen to podcasts and if this helps people to speak up [and] speak out, to fight for themselves a bit harder when it comes to not being believed, then that’s what matters.”

Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare is streaming on Netflix now.

Where is Simran Bhogal from Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare now?

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As depicted in the documentary, Assi connected to the man claiming to be Bobby Jandu on social media after he sent her a friend request. They grew closer after Bobby confided in her about the breakdown of his prior marriage and began messaging on a regular basis.

The two never met, and Kirat later learned that Bobby had been shot while in Kenya and had been placed in a witness protection programme. After a period of time, Bobby reconnected to Kirat, but whenever they came close to arranging a meeting in real life, more excuses arose.

With Bobby becoming increasingly controlling, Kirat eventually hired a private investigator, which provided her with an address in Brighton, which did bring her to a man named Bobby Jandu, but it was not the man she had been messaging.

This brought Simran Bhogal to finally pay a visit to Kirat’s house the next day, when she revealed the truth of the catfishing scam.

Bhogal has not been charged with any crime, as catfishing is not against the law, but Kirat did bring a civil case against Simran in 2020, winning a substantial settlement for harassment, misuse of private information and data protection breaches. The film also confirmed that Simran left her job after the truth came to light.

Bhogal did not agree to be interviewed for the Netflix documentary, and not much else is known about her current status.

A statement from Simran’s lawyers said: “This matter concerns a family dispute over events that began over a decade ago, when I was a schoolgirl. As far as I’m concerned, this is a private family matter that has been resolved.

“I strongly object to the numerous unfounded and seriously defamatory accusations that have been made about me, as well as details of private matters that have been shared with the media.”