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Indian Express
an hour ago
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Kabir Bedi recalls ‘getting stoned' while working on a Dev Anand film: ‘He sent a doctor'
While conversations about a purported spike in substance abuse, particularly among youngsters, continue, reports of such practices persisting in the film industry have also emerged in recent times. Amid all this, certain remarks made by senior actor Kabir Bedi recently have gained attention. Bedi revealed that he, too, experimented with drugs in the 1970s, adding that, like many of his contemporaries, he was drawn to hippie culture. Reflecting on that era, he shared that the world underwent significant changes. Youngsters, he said, began questioning and pushing back against prevailing militaristic and hyper-masculine attitudes. He noted that the music scene also experienced a revolution at the time, marked by the arrival of rock bands such as The Beatles, Pink Floyd and The Doors, as well as artists like Bob Dylan. Bedi further stated that philosophers like Alan Watts and poets like Allen Ginsburg also had an influence on the movement. 'In India, we knew about all this and wanted to be part of the movement,' he shared during a chat with Filmfare. Admitting that he, too, was part of the hippie movement, Bedi added, 'They brought a lot of new drugs which were passed around. Many of us experimented with them (the drugs). It was all part of a changing world.' When asked if it altered him emotionally and mentally, the actor noted, 'Obviously.' On balancing his career along with all these, Bedi said: 'It's not as though taking drugs means we were on drugs all the time. These were things that we experimented on from time to time; when we took time off. But it certainly affected the whole philosophy of the age.' For the unversed, the hippies were members of a countercultural movement that rejected the customs of mainstream American life. He also recalled getting high while working on a film with Dev Anand. 'One day, a hippie came into my room and said, 'Man, do you mind if I come in? I'm freezing out here.' I invited him in, thinking I would let him watch the shooting. They lit up this big fat joint. I don't know what he smoked, but he got me stoned as well. I looked around, and nothing made sense to me. I told Dev saab that I couldn't shoot that night. He asked what happened, and I told him I wasn't feeling well. He then sent in a doctor who gave me an injection,' he shared. Discussing the nature of that era in depth, Bedi said there was significant societal resistance when he and his then-girlfriend, model and Odissi dancer Protima Gauri, decided to live together out of wedlock. 'Even when it was such a conservative time at one level, when Protima and I started living together, people were writing articles about it. My bosses called me and asked if this was the right image to give out to the clients. It was quite threatening because I could have lost my job. Though they didn't fire me, they didn't quite approve of what I was doing. But we fancied ourselves as the rebels of the time. We just wanted to be different and not go with all the old assumptions. So, if living together was what we wanted, we did that,' he added. Kabir Bedi and Protima Gauri eventually married in 1969 and had two children together before parting ways in 1974. She passed away in the Malpa landslide in 1998, a year after their son Siddharth died by suicide.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
VerSe Innovation allegedly billed Builder.ai without services; Indian company denies claims
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Bengaluru-based VerSe Innovation , the parent firm of news aggregator platform Dailyhunt , and London-based artificial intelligence startup allegedly inflated revenue by issuing invoices to each other without services being provided in many of those cases, a Bloomberg report two companies routinely billed one another for roughly the same amounts between 2021 and 2024, the news agency reported citing documents it reviewed, adding that collected close to $60 million in revenue from VerSe in the four-year period for services such as application Innovation cofounder and CEO Umang Bedi , terming the allegations 'factually incorrect and baseless', told ET that the amount invoiced and accounted for as revenue in its financial statements by the company was against 'services that VerSe (or a relevant subsidiary) rendered and delivered to VerSe has accounted as an expense, in VerSe's financial statements, only for services that it in fact received from or its relevant subsidiary. All these services have also been verified from time to time by reputable external organisations,' he the nature of these services, Bedi said that provided cloud compute services to VerSe, which amounted to $80 million for the 2020-25 period. On the other hand, the London-based startup availed advertising services from VerSe for around $50 million during this 2021 and 2022, VerSe Innovation raised a total of about $1.5 billion in capital from marquee investors such as Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments), Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board (Ontario Teachers'), Luxor Capital, Sofina, The Carlyle Group, Alpha Wave, Google and is also a backer of which itself filed for bankruptcy in May after one of its large lenders seized most of its cash. This was preceded by the $1.5-billion valued startup's admission that it overstated its sales to creditors. In the US, prosecutors have also subpoenaed the company demanding that it hand over financial statements, accounting policies and a list of people in the know and documents, Bloomberg reported that the two companies appear to have interspersed the timing and amount of the invoices to avoid suspicion, though each firm ultimately spent approximately the same amount.'Any suggestion that and VerSe coordinated with one another to inflate sales figures or that they routinely billed one another for roughly the same amount or that products and services weren't actually provided against payments made or that there was a practice of reporting bogus revenue in coordination or that payments were intentionally interspersed in timing and amount of the invoices to avoid suspicion, are not only baseless and factually incorrect but also defamatory and irresponsible,' Bedi said on these VerSe Innovation, the reports of alleged 'round-tripping' of money with comes close on the heels of audit firm Deloitte flagging lack of 'appropriate internal controls' as part of its opinion on the company's 2023-24 financials. The Big Four firm weaknesses in internal controls over several aspects of VerSe Innovation's business, including its advertising revenue and relationship with gaps, Deloitte said, 'could potentially result in material misstatement' of VerSe Innovation's account. Bedi said that while 'weaknesses were noted in certain internal controls, the statutory auditors have clearly opined that these weaknesses 'do not affect our opinion on the said consolidated financial statements of the company''.In its annual financial statements for 2023-24, VerSe Innovation had updated its financials for the previous fiscal -- adjusting its total income to Rs 1,356 crore from Rs 1,809 crore filed with its 2022-23 statements. Deloitte had highlighted the changes in the figures reported for 2022-23, while also flagging an unsubstantiated claim of Rs 35 crore connected to unexplained invoices from a supplier which the company did not recognise as a trade payable. The company had said that the restatement in revenue for 2022-23 was because of adjustments made on account of adoption of Indian Accounting Standards
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Builder.ai-VerSe fake sales: All you need to know about the 'round-tripping' scandal
Artificial intelligence (AI) startup Builder. ai, which is filing for bankruptcy, has allegedly faked transactions with VerSe Innovation , the parent company of Dailyhunt, for several years to falsely boost its reported sales, according to a Bloomberg report. What happened Between 2021 and 2024, Builder. ai and VerSe Innovation reportedly exchanged invoices for similar amounts in a scheme known as 'round-tripping' , according to sources familiar with the matter. This practice involves moving money between companies without any real exchange of goods or services — purely to inflate revenue figures for investors. The Bloomberg report claims many of these transactions were for services that were never actually delivered by either company. VerSe responds Live Events Umang Bedi, cofounder of VerSe Innovation, dismissed the allegations, saying: 'It was absolutely baseless and false' to suggest that VerSe recorded expenses or billed for services it didn't receive or provide. Discover the stories of your interest Blockchain 5 Stories Cyber-safety 7 Stories Fintech 9 Stories E-comm 9 Stories ML 8 Stories Edtech 6 Stories 'We're not the kind of company that is in the business of inflating revenues,' Bedi said in an interview. The Deloitte audit Last month, ET reported that Deloitte, the auditor for VerSe, flagged serious internal control issues in the company's financial operations for the year ended March 31, 2024. The audit firm said these 'material weaknesses' could lead to errors in reporting expenses, trade payables and other accounts. Specifically, Deloitte pointed to gaps in how VerSe selects and evaluates suppliers, approves invoices and payments, and tracks its expenses. The firm also noted an 'unsubstantiated claim' of Rs 35 crore from a supplier, which VerSe hasn't recognised as a payable. Despite these concerns, Deloitte clarified that its opinion on VerSe's consolidated financials remained unchanged. In response, VerSe said it was working to tighten its internal processes. The company said that it is conducting a detailed workshop on the 'best practices and checklists' and aims to build a complete, well-documented system covering everything from supplier selection to payment approvals. Builder. ai files for bankruptcy Earlier this month, Builder. ai confirmed plans to file for bankruptcy after one of its key lenders, Viola Credit, seized $37 million from its accounts. This left the company with just $5 million in its reserves, according to CEO Manpreet Ratia. Reports by Bloomberg revealed that Builder. ai had overstated its 2024 projected sales to creditors by 300%. This led to increased scrutiny and the freezing of its funds. As a result, US prosecutors have issued a subpoena demanding detailed financial records and customer information from the company. Job cuts at both companies On 17 May, VerSe Innovation announced it was laying off 350 employees as part of its push to focus more on AI and reduce costs. This follows a previous round of layoffs, when 150 employees were let go in 2021. Meanwhile, as reported earlier, Builder. ai is also being forced to let go of most of its workforce due to a lack of available cash. According to Ratia, although the company still has $5 million in Indian bank accounts, restrictions on overseas remittances prevent it from paying its international employees. Founded in 2016, Builder. ai offered a platform to help businesses quickly build custom apps with little or no coding, positioning itself as a faster and simpler alternative to traditional app development. The startup attracted major investment, including $250 million in 2022 from QIA, a leading sovereign wealth fund. In 2023, Microsoft also became a strategic partner, investing in Builder. ai as part of a broader collaboration.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Builder.ai faked business with Indian firm VerSe to inflate sales
, the artificial intelligence startup that recently announced plans to declare bankruptcy, faked business with the Indian social-media startup VerSe Innovation for years to falsely inflate its sales, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg and people with direct knowledge of the practice. The two companies routinely billed one another for roughly the same amounts between 2021 and 2024, documents reviewed by Bloomberg show, as part of an alleged practice known as "round-tripping" that the people said used to inflate revenue figures it presented to investors. In many cases, products and services weren't actually provided to either company for these payments, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information. Umang Bedi , a VerSe co-founder, said it was 'absolutely baseless and false' that his company would have recorded expenses or billed services that it didn't receive or provide. 'We're not the kind of company that is in the business of inflating revenues,' he said in an interview. A representative for declined to comment. once valued at about $1.5 billion, is the most high-profile AI startup to collapse since ChatGPT's launch started a global investment frenzy. Its downfall shows the risks inherent in the rush to back AI startups as investors seek to replicate the success of industry heavyweights such as OpenAI and Anthropic. The London-based startup, which pitched its tech as a way to make apps with little or no coding, said earlier in May it planned to file for bankruptcy after a major creditor seized most of its reported earlier that overstated its projected 2024 sales to creditors by 300%, which contributed to the lenders' decision to seize the company's funds. Bloomberg also reported that US prosecutors have demanded that the company hand over financial statements, accounting policies and a list of its customers as part of a subpoena. has declined to comment on the subpoena. The company has acknowledged it's found discrepancies in its historical sales but has declined to comment on the scope of the alleged overstatement. collected close to $60 million in revenue from VerSe in the four-year period for services such as application development, according to people with knowledge of the situation. In turn, the AI startup sent funds to VerSe and its subsidiary, Quark Media Tech, for services such as marketing, the documents show. The two companies appear to have interspersed the timing and amount of the invoices to avoid suspicion, though each firm ultimately spent approximately the same amount, according to the people and documents. Bedi, a former managing director for Facebook in India and South Asia, said VerSe started working with around 2021, but denied that the companies were acting in cooperation or failed to deliver any services. 'There is no correlation on any timing of any payment to any partner,' Bedi said. had raised more than $450 million from investors, including Insight Partners and the Qatar Investment Authority , or QIA, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds. Microsoft Corp. invested in 2023 and announced plans to integrate the startup's offerings with Microsoft's cloud and Teams product. 'We see creating an entirely new category that empowers everyone to be a developer,' Jon Tinter, a Microsoft corporate vice president, said at the time. A representative for Insight Partners didn't respond to requests for comment. Spokespeople for Microsoft and QIA, which also invested in VerSe, declined to comment. In February, founder Sachin Dev Duggal stepped down as chief executive officer, although he remained on the board and retained his title as 'Chief Wizard' at the nine-year-old company. He was replaced as CEO by Manpreet Ratia, an investor with Jungle Ventures, a backer based in Singapore. Shortly after joining, Ratia said he planned to strengthen the company's governance and policies. Three months after taking the role, he told employees the company planned to shut down. 'With no viable alternatives, the Board has made the extremely difficult decision to enter into insolvency,' he wrote in an internal email reviewed by Bloomberg. Duggal did not respond to multiple requests for comment. VerSe, which is based in Bengaluru, is one of the largest consumer tech newcomers in India. VerSe has said that its news aggregation app, Dailyhunt, has more than 350 million monthly users, and it released a video app, called Josh , right after the Indian government banned TikTok. In 2022, VerSe raised $805 million from the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and other investors in a round that gave the startup a $5 billion valuation. Goldman Sachs and Google had invested in VerSe earlier. Representatives for the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Goldman declined to comment. Google didn't respond to requests for comment. In VerSe's financial report for the year ending in March 2024, its auditor Deloitte wrote in its opinion that the startup lacked 'appropriate internal controls' over several aspects of its business, including its information technology, advertising revenue and relationship with suppliers. Those flaws 'could potentially result in material misstatement' of the company's accounts, the auditor wrote in the report, which was reviewed by Bloomberg. Bedi pointed out that Deloitte did sign off on the startup's accounts as 'true and fair.' He described the issues the auditor flagged as common 'process control' difficulties that the company was working through. The Deloitte opinion was previously reported by the Indian publication Mint. The newspaper also reported in April that VerSe's chief financial officer had resigned ahead of the startup's expected initial public offering. Bedi said the CFO, Sandip Basu, left for health reasons. He said the company currently has 'very little debt' and plans to break even by the second half of 2025. He said the company is speaking to potential advisers about an IPO, but doesn't have firm plans. Basu couldn't immediately be reached for comment. founder Duggal and Bedi have cooperated publicly and Duggal has posted on social media with Bedi . In 2023, Duggal added a photo on his verified Instagram account showing him and Bedi standing together, sporting light colored blazers, in front of 10 Downing Street, the official residence and office of the British Prime Minister. 'With my main man @ at @10downingstreet for #londontechweek,' Duggal wrote, tagging Bedi's verified account. In a later LinkedIn post, Duggal thanked Bedi for contributing to a gathering in Singapore as one of the 'incredible speakers from the extended family.' Bedi said he participated in the event via Zoom and did not travel to Singapore. He said he invested about $10,000 in Duggal's company, which was previously known as around 2017. But Bedi said he has only met Duggal 'two or three' times, noting that the London meeting was part of a broader group of tech executives and entrepreneurs. 'I don't have a very close interpersonal relationship,' Bedi said. 'I have a professional business working relationship.'
Time of India
7 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Gagandeep Singh Bedi joins Smile Group to lead HealthTech Venture Builder
Synopsis Smile Group is venturing into the healthtech sector. They are launching a Healthtech Venture Builder. Gagandeep Singh Bedi will lead this initiative as Managing Partner. Bedi brings extensive experience from AstraZeneca and other firms. He has also worked with Indian startups. This move aims to capitalize on the growing AI in healthcare market in Asia.
