An upcoming documentary is set to expose the truth about a serial imposter whose exploits saw him dubbed as the ‘Hollywood Con Queen.’
Hargobind Tahilramani, from Indonesia, is said to have masterminded a years-long deception that saw him impersonate the likes of Star Wars producer Kathleen Kennedy, former Sony movie chief Amy Pascal and ex-Paramount boss Sherry Lansing.
He was able to con over 300 aspiring creatives – such as actors, screenwriters and photographers – out of more than $1 million by offering them the chance at a big break, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Tahilramani’s alleged plan later fell apart and a court decided he could be extradited from the UK to the US – but there would be yet more drama at trial, which was marred with histrionics and even a fire.
Here, FEMAIL has laid bare the sordid details as Apple TV’s three-part true crime series gets set to unravel the case.
Hargobind Tahilramani, from Indonesia, is said to have masterminded a years-long deception conning over 300 aspiring creatives – such as actors, screenwriters and photographers – out of more than $1 million
He impersonated the likes of Star Wars producer Kathleen Kennedy (left) and former Sony movie chief Amy Pascal (right), according to The Hollywood Reporter
Tahilramani is thought to have first set out on his elaborate scheme back in 2013 – and has been be accused of wreaking havoc on the entertainment industry for the next seven years.
The serial imposter began by initially making contact with his victims via email before connecting on regular calls where he mimicked the voices of top female executives – even down to their accents, according to reports.
Having assumed their identities, it is claimed that he was able to lure his unsuspecting targets to Indonesia with the promise of life-changing career opportunities.
The creatives paid for their own flights but, upon arrival, said that they were then pressured into paying overinflated prices for logistical services with the promise of reimbursement.
But the expenses were never paid back and the projects never materialized, which left them thousands of dollars out of pocket.
Instead of securing their big break, the targets were in fact ‘being exploited in a perverse psychological game spanning the globe,’ according to the documentary synopsis.
Among those to have fallen prey to the scheme was New York-based screenwriter Greg Mandarano.
He is said to have been scammed out of $80,000 – $40,000 of which he paid in cash – after being approached by the conman who was then posing as film producer Jean ‘Gigi’ Pritzker.
Apple TV’s three-part true crime series titled Hollywood Con Queen (pictured) is set to unravel the case
Tahilramani is said to have also mimicked the voices of other top female executives including ex-Paramount boss Sherry Lansing (left) and film producer Jean ‘Gigi’ Pritzker (right)
Tahilramani also offered sexual favors to Mandarano and tried to get him to send recordings of himself, according to Joel Smith, who represented the US during the extradition hearing.
Similarly, freelance photographer Will Strathman was allegedly approached by the fraudster as Amy Pascal under the guise that she was directing a new travel series for Netflix.
He paid nearly $50,000 in fictional expenses during three trips in 2017.
The depth of the deceit began to unravel following an explosive expose by The Hollywood Reporter in 2018.
It helped track Tahilramani down before he was arrested at a hotel in Manchester, England, back in 2020 after a year-long probe by the FBI.
The US accused the defendant of eight charges, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, two counts of wire fraud and five counts of aggravated identity theft, and called for him to be extradited.
But Tahilramani, who was previously a food blogger, was held in custody in the UK for over two years as he attempted to battle the extradition.
And the hearing was not without its own hurdles.
His lawyer had argued that a US prison would put him at increased risk of suicide and violence from other prisoners due to his ‘unique characteristics.’
This included reference to ‘his homosexuality, his demonstrable femininity, his prior history of abuse which has affected his mental health and his histrionic personality disorder.’
Tahilramani, who said he had been jailed in Jakarta for making a bomb hoax threat to the US embassy in Indonesia, appeared in court via video link
Tahilramani, who said he had been jailed in Jakarta for making a bomb hoax threat to the US embassy in Indonesia, appeared in court via video link.
But he grew increasingly agitated during a comfort break after the judge had left the room.
Addressing reporters on the stream directly, he said: ‘F**k you, go f**k yourself, you see what I’m going to do to you in America, I’m going to f**k you over.’
During his trial, Tahilramani also gathered up his things and stormed out of the room that had been allocated him in prison from which he could connect to court via video link.
He said that he would be seeking a judicial review of the verdict – which had not even been handed down at the time.
The accused returned five minutes later and did not address his outburst, but it was followed by yet another interruption.
This time it was an alarm that suddenly sounded in the courtroom as an automated message repeatedly said: ‘Attention please. Due to an emergency it is necessary to evacuate the building.’
It was later confirmed that a fire had broken out in the court’s basement resulting in 300 people being forced to flee the building.
One person was treated by an ambulance at the scene and taken to hospital.
There has been no recent update in Tahilramani’s case.
Apple TV’s Hollywood Con Queen is set to premiere on May 8.
