The Shahid Kapoor-starer Farzi has impressed the audience worldwide as it ranked the most viewed series on Prime Video. The show focuses on Sunny, an artist whose expertise lies in flawlessly imitating existing art. How a man disillusioned by the income inequality in India decides to make counterfeit money forms the basic premise of the series.
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Recently, in April 2023, the Noida Police, in the State of Uttar Pradesh, busted a fake currency racket with the arrest of five people. The gang was apparently inspired by the series and took to Instagram to connect with their network spread across Delhi-NCR, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. They were caught with ₹ 6.50 lakh in denominations of 2000, 500, and 200. In another interesting case earlier in January a 24-year-old man was arrested by the Bengaluru city police for providing counterfeit currency notes worth Rs 4 lakh in lieu of Rs 1 lakh genuine notes. The man had learned to print fake notes by watching YouTube videos.
Now, one would say that cinema (a web series and YouTube in this case) is at fault for inspiring the forgery. But cinema is a double-edged sword; it can be inspired by or it can inspire many. In the case of Farzi, the series is surely inspired by the rampant circulation of fake rupee notes across India.
According to the National Crime Control Bureau, law enforcement agencies across the country have seized fake Indian currency notes with a face value of Rs 245.33 crore since 2016, the year Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes were demonetized by the central government. Gujarat tops the list of states in the number of currency notes seized, according to the National Crime Records Bureau. A major root cause of this issue is the state’s vicinity to the sea and land borders of Pakistan.
Apart from Gujarat, Telangana, Assam, West Bengal, and Punjab are flooding with fake currencies. As per a report by NCRB released in August 2022, West Bengal lodged 82 cases of counterfeit bank and currency notes in 2021, the highest in the country. The earliest cause of fake currencies in India can be sourced back to the times when neither Shahid Kapoor nor Raj and DK, the director duo were born. In 1997-98, the central government outsourced the printing of Indian currency notes to the U.S., Germany, and the U.K. The step was not welcomed by many and the RBI and the government were equally criticized.
In 2010, the CBI found that the counterfeit notes in the 70-odd branches of various banks on the India-Nepal border were given by the RBI itself. Later when CBI raided the vault of the RBI, it found the same counterfeit currency that was smuggled by ISI, the Pakistani intelligence agency. So, a baffling question arises, how did RBI end up with fake Indian currency notes?
The CBI had a lab in the U.S. analyze these notes. The lab marveled at the astonishing similarity of the fake notes with the genuine ones. It surely was the job of an international company that was dealing with printing currency. This suggests that either some RBI officials were involved in the conspiracy or an international mafia had taken over the country’s entire economy.
Impact of Fake Currencies on India’s Economy and Financial Security
The proliferation of fake currencies in India has had a significant impact on the country’s economy and financial security. Fake currencies are often used to finance terrorist activities and are also used to purchase illegal goods and services. In addition, fake currencies can also be used to launder money.
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The government has put some measures in place to curtail the spread of fake currency. In 2012, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) launched a website explaining ways to detect counterfeit notes. The RBI has also set up a special task force to investigate the matter and take appropriate action. The government has also asked banks to install currency validation machines at their branches to help identify fake notes. But such measures and even demonetization, do not seem to have led to a drop in the circulation of these notes.
In Farzi, Shahid’s Sunny gets into forgery to clear a loan. However, it eventually becomes a habit and grows to a level where even the fake currency mafia takes notice of his activities. This mafia exists for sure in reality and may be bigger than estimated. In October 2022 alone, the police seized six boxes of fake currency notes in an ambulance in the Surat district of Gujarat, with a cumulative value of Rs 317 crore.
Apart from Currency, Document Forgery a Major Issue in India
Counterfeiting is a major issue in India. Apart from fake currencies, forged documents, adulterated food & beverages, and counterfeit pharmaceuticals top the list of commodities sold in the country. In recent years, document forgery has become a growing concern in India. From fake degrees to phony identity cards, the rise of fraudulent documents is posing serious threats to the country’s security and economy. Advancements in technology have made it easier for fraudsters to produce convincing fakes. For example, scanners and printers can be used to create high-quality counterfeit documents. Additionally, there are many online vendors who sell blank document templates that can be easily customized with forged information.
Increase in document forgery has had a number of consequences for Indian society. First, it has made it more difficult for law enforcement and other officials to verify the authenticity of documents. Second, it has resulted in increased fraud and identity theft. Finally, it has put a strain on government resources as officials try to catch up with the latest trends in document forgery.
Types of Document Forgeries in India
There are many types of document forgeries in India. The most common type is the forged birth certificate. This is often used to obtain a passport or other government ID. Other common types of forgeries include:
Forged Educational Certificates: These are often used to get a job or admission into a school or college.
Forged Marriage Certificates: These are sometimes used to obtain a visa or immigration benefits.
Forged Death Certificates: These may be used to collect life insurance benefits or other financial assets.
Forged Medical Reports: These can be used to defraud insurance companies or obtain disability benefits.
Prevention and Solutions
The number of document forgery cases in India has increased significantly in recent years. There are many reasons for this, but the most common one is that people are trying to obtain fake documents in order to get jobs or visas. The good news is that there are ways to prevent and solve this problem. One way is to make sure that all documents are properly authenticated by authorities before they are accepted. Another solution is to use blockchain to issue secure digital credentials, such as diplomas, degrees, and certifications, that can be verified by employers and other organizations.