Who is Murtaza Rangwala? Alleged Scammer Accused of Fraud

Beware !! Murtaza Rangwala call himself as an Indian entrepreneur residing in the UAE, but in truth, he is nothing more than a individual who resell public relations services from various vendors. He started a blog Filmymantra, which was active once as a Bollywood news blog but is now a stagnant WordPress site. He also claims to serve as digital and social media consultant for leading Bollywood films and celebrities, which seems just another self promotional statement.

His Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/filmymantramedia/
His Linkedin – https://ae.linkedin.com/in/murtaza-rangwala-7a820126
His Twitter – https://x.com/thatmedianerd

HIS JOURNEY OF PAID PR ARTICLES.

Murtaza aka Murtaza Ebrahim Rangwala has published many paid PR articles to enhance his online presence and used this Fake PR interviews to get his social media verified. These articles, featured in various publications, presented him as a successful entrepreneur and digital marketer. However, in reality, all these features were paid brand content rather than genuine news stories. Though Rangwala too has received some credit for the assistance he rendered the Mumbai Police with regard to their cyber security, the question remains as troubling is the reputation built with a network of content crafted for the sole purpose of gaining trust. This is a striking instance of how some people can leverage PR Articles to shape perceptions that are completely distorted from the truth. He understood it very well that selling PR Services & Social Media Verification Services to the clients would be difficult if he did not have his own verification done, and a couple of PR interviews done to flyer as samples. His interviews and feature articles that you see in Digital Space are either Brand content, where you pay Publication for publishing, or purchased from multiple service providers on SWAPD forum.

FROM PR SERVICE RESELLER TO $19,365 SCAM

Swapd Forum is an Escrow Marketplace that is a spot for numerous freelance social media services, account unban and ban services, Youtube service, and many more social media related services. It was from  this forum from where he resell various services to client.  His profile can be found at https://swapd.co/u/lord/activity.

How Does Swapd Forum Work? A buyer selects a service from a provider and puts an agreed-upon sum into Swapd’s escrow account. The funds are released to the seller after the work is complete. However, some buyers and sellers who have dealt with each other for a long time do not use escrow out of trust from previous partnerships. This is where Murtaza exploited the system, allegedly defrauding a claimed seller of $19,365.

He opted for Verification Services from a Reputable Seller to verify his client on Instagram with the Legacy method. This required having PR pieces across various media outlets. The total cost agreed was $19,365. The service provider agreed to the terms that Murtaza will pay after the service is deliver. Given his history on Swapd, the seller was willing to move forward without an escrow deposit.

Murtaza’s service provider did deliver; he secured high-tier PR placements and was able to get murtaza’s client verified on Instagram. He was requested to clear the agreed amount but he went silent on clearing the payment. It is reported he gave unhelpful answers, avoided responding to repeated messages, and essentially ghosted with no intention of paying. This led to Murtaza abandoning the forum and getting branded as a payment fraud for $19,365. The whole discussion can be seen here – https://swapd.co/t/warning-lord-aka-murtaza-rangwala-payment-runner-scammer-19-365-60-filmymantra-digital/1457312

We were surprised by his old tweet, where he spoke out against scams, while he himself is now involved in one.

To wrap up, the supposed scam executed by Murtaza Rangwala has further fueled a discussion around the PR industry that PR professional are Fraud and cannot be trusted. The allegations against him highlight the risks of trusting someone blindly in business and the importance of having proper contracts. Regardless of how this disagreement will eventually be resolved, it has certainly sparked the debate on ethics in digital services and services outsourcing.