Scam 2003 The Telgi Story -2023- Web Series 〈Hot – 2026〉

The series chronicles the rise and fall of Abdul Karim Telgi, a man who, between the late 1990s and early 2000s, orchestrated a scam worth an estimated ₹20,000+ crore. The premise is deceptively simple: Telgi and his network printed fake judicial and non-judicial stamp papers that were virtually indistinguishable from the real ones. These stamps were then sold across multiple states, defrauding banks, insurance companies, and the government itself.

The show traces Telgi’s journey from a small-time fruit seller and photocopy machine operator in Pune to the kingpin of a sprawling, cross-country empire. It details how he exploited a gap in the government’s stamp paper printing system, bribed a network of corrupt politicians, policemen, and bureaucrats, and built a parallel economy that operated right under the nose of the establishment.

While Scam 1992 was directed by Hansal Mehta, Scam 2003 is handled by a team led by Mehta (who is the showrunner) along with directors Tushar Hiranandani and Jai Mehta. The visual language shifts dramatically. Scam 2003 The Telgi Story -2023- Web Series

This suits the subject matter. This is not a scam of the boardroom; it is a scam of the printing press. The writing is tight, focusing heavily on the process of corruption. How do you bribe a cop? How do you make a printer agree to cut corners? The series takes its time explaining the technicalities of offset printing, paper gumming, and serial number generation. For finance and crime nerds, this validation is thrilling.

The biggest question leading up to the release of Scam 2003: The Telgi Story was: Who can replace Pratik Gandhi? The answer is Gagan Dev Riar. In a career-defining performance, Riar does not imitate Telgi but inhabits him. He captures the nervous energy, the stutter (which Telgi reportedly had), the predatory intelligence, and the pathetic vulnerability of a man who knows the walls are closing in. The series chronicles the rise and fall of

Unlike the suave, charismatic Harshad Mehta, Telgi was a messy, desperate, and often cruel man. Riar’s performance ensures the audience never quite roots for him, but they cannot look away. The supporting cast, including Sana Amin Sheikh as Telgi’s conflicted wife and Bharat Jadhav as a loyal yet terrified accomplice, adds layers of moral complexity.

IMDb Rating (as of 2024): 8.4/10 (based on 25k+ votes) This suits the subject matter

| Theme | Depiction | |-------|------------| | Systemic corruption | Every institution—police, judiciary, banks, political parties—is shown as complicit. No single villain, but a network of greed. | | Class and ambition | Telgi’s lower-middle-class background drives his desperation to “win” at any cost. | | Media as a watchdog | Sanjay Singh’s dogged reporting is shown as the only uncorrupted force. | | Post-colonial bureaucracy | The stamp paper system, a relic of British rule, was ripe for exploitation. |

| Aspect | Details | |--------|---------| | Title | Scam 2003: The Telgi Story | | Release Year | 2023 (Premiered Sept 2, 2023) | | Platform | Sony LIV | | Director | Tushar Hiranandani (ep. 1-4), Hansal Mehta (ep. 5-8, also showrunner) | | Producer | Applause Entertainment in association with StudioNEXT | | Lead Actor | Gagan Dev Riar (as Abdul Karim Telgi) | | Episodes | 10 (approx. 40–50 mins each) | | Language | Hindi (with regional accents: Marathi, Kannada, Urdu) |