New Delhi: Fifty-three-year-old Hemant Nagindas Purshottamdas Modi had essayed multiple roles over the years. He changed his look, identity, and name. Not just for onscreen roles. The murder convict was on the run ever since he jumped parole and vanished in 2014.
Such was the meticulousness of his approach that none in the tellyworld had the slightest inkling that he was convicted of murder in 2008. That facade served him well, as Hemant featured alongside mega actors such as Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan in ‘Thugs of Hindostan’ and Ranveer Singh in ‘Jayeshbhai Jordaar’.
The run ended Wednesday in what seemed like a plot straight out from the cinema. On Wednesday, a ‘fan’ approached him at the Gheekanta metro station in Ahmedabad and spoke about his work in films, television serials, web series, and theatre.
Midway through the talk, Hemant sensed something was wrong. But, it was too late. The ‘fan’ was a police constable, who was part of a detailed trap set to arrest ‘Spandan Modi’, the alias which he had assumed now.
In these 12 years, Hemant had managed to rake up substantial work both in Bollywood and Gujarati cinema. His professional portfolio includes roles in the upcoming films ‘Lahore 1947’ and ‘Metro In Dino’.
His constant movement between cities, low-profile and multiple identities helped Hemant evade arrest for over a decade, according to the Ahmedabad police.
The 2005 murder case
The murder case pertains to an illegal staircase built by Leelaben Chandrashekhar Madrasi at Parshvanath Township, Azad Chowk in the Nava Naroda area of Ahmedabad, that had led to a land dispute.
On the night of 15 June 2005, Hemant, his brother Sachin Nagindas Modi, and five others fought with Ajay Ramabhai Patel and his friend Narendra alias Nanno Yashwant Kamble over the illegal structure. Kamble was killed in this episode.
A case was lodged under relevant sections of the erstwhile Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Bombay Police Act. All the accused were imprisoned in 2005. For the said crime, Hemant and his group were sentenced to life imprisonment on 27 August, 2008.
In prison, the Naroda man would keep on looking for ways to escape prison. “He just did not want to be there. He kept studying during his prison time, and kept reading legal books. When he got the opportunity to escape, he took it,” an officer from the Ahmedabad Police Crime Branch told ThePrint, referring to the 30-day parole granted by the Gujarat High Court in June 2014.
The next month, authorities declared him a ‘parole jumper’ as he did not turn up to surrender at the end of the parole.
Escape done, Hemant faced a piquant situation as his family had severed ties with him. Worse, his wife had filed for divorce. Hemant, the police said, was left shattered as he was brought up in a closely knit family.
Left with no money and his family turning hostile, Hemant had to devise a plan to sustain himself. “He did odd jobs at first. Like hotel management. For a few days, he managed to earn, and rent out a PG. But, he knew he had to figure out permanent income,” the officer said.
As Hemant looked for avenues, acting came up in his mind. After all, he did theatre during his college days.
“Back in 2014, Hemant believed he could become an actor, and get away with it. If he changes his looks, throws away all identity proofs, assumes a new name, how would police get to him—he thought,” DCP (Crime Branch) Ajit Rajian told ThePrint. “Changing his identity was easy for him as he did not have Aadhaar then.”
For a year, he lived in Gujarat’s Patan under the name of ‘Twinkle Mukundbhai Dave’ and established himself as a theatre actor there. ‘Spandan Modi’—the other name—came in handy while acting in movies.
Later, he lived as a paying guest in Ahmedabad and worked in private companies. Hemant would often travel to Mumbai as well.
“He never stayed in a rented accommodation, and kept changing his place to stay, in order to avoid getting caught. But, by now, Hemant had started looking very different. He had maintained no contact with his family,” the second police officer.
“He was a confident man. Tall, spoke well. So, at first, he did small roles—like awareness campaigns for trusts, welfare projects, government events, advertisements. He managed to travel and sustain his lifestyle. It wasn’t very lavish.”
Film industry entry
From 2014 onwards, Hemant began getting offers for films and TV serials, though mostly small roles. He didn’t have any contact in the industry, the police said, but he managed because of his skill set. For instance, he would wait for hours, until he landed the offer.
Slowly, he found more and more work as a supporting actor in the Mumbai film industry. That achieved, he stuck to his strategy of staying as a paying guest.
He was part of Anurag Basu’s ‘Metro In Dino’ starring Sara Ali Khan, Aditya Roy Kapur, as well as part of an upcoming movie ‘Lahore 1947’ that features Sunny Deol and Shabana Azmi.
As for Gujarati cinema, he worked in films including ‘Samandar’, ‘Mukhi’, ‘53 Mu Panu’, and ‘Love You Baa’. Hemant, the police said, has been part of more than 20-25 projects, including Gujarati TV serials.
He also has projects with top southern actors like Mohanlal and Prithviraj, the police added.
“Even in the film industry, he wouldn’t reveal much about himself to avoid getting caught. At first, he would maintain a low-key profile, but later, after changing at least two names, he felt the police would never reach him. So, he began posting on social media. He looked very different by now. He didn’t have to hide any more,” DCP Rajian said.
Regarding his identification, the officer said, “since he assumed a new identity, he used those ID cards at places of work. We don’t know what background checks are done in the film industry.”
The police net
The Ahmedabad police said every district police unit has a parole jumper cell that keeps track of criminals on the run. The list gets updated frequently. Hemant’s name was in the list—but the local police’s investigation couldn’t track Hemant.
“This was a challenge for the police. Before he had jumped bail, there was no record with the police,” the first officer added.
This changed when the case was transferred to the Crime Branch about a fortnight ago. The police began working with their informants. One of them tipped them off about a suspect who had some semblance with the man at large for more than a decade.
The input was brief: The suspect was seen at a nearby village in Ahmedabad where the shooting of a Gujarati TV serial was going on. The police worked on all leads, but they couldn’t find Hemant or a look-alike.
Utmost care was taken as the investigation could not be made public to avoid a possible vanishing act of the suspect. The police tracked the movement of ‘Spandan’.
On Wednesday, the constable spotted ‘Spandan’ and managed to strike a conversation. “When Hemant reached, the constable acted like a huge fan. He told him that he had seen him in multiple TV serials, that he loved his acting. Hemant was surprised as the fan was well-groomed. At first, Hemant thanked the fan but within minutes, he became suspicious. He understood the fan was trying to get him to speak,” DCP Rajian said.
That was when the constable produced an old photo of Hemant to confront him at the metro station. “Seeing the photograph, Hemant claimed that it was a different person. But soon he gave up after realising it was futile and accepted that he was the wanted man that the police were on the lookout for,” the officer said.
(Edited by Tony Rai)