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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteSweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare is based on Kirat Assi’s real experience, not a fictional romance. The man whose photographs and identity appeared in the messages was Bobby Jandu, a cardiologist who was not participating in the relationship. The person behind the “Bobby” account and a web of supporting profiles was Kirat’s cousin, Simran Bhogal. The documentary records how the deception was uncovered, but it does not establish a definitive reason Simran carried it out.
What is Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare about?
The 2024 Netflix film is a British documentary inspired by the Sweet Bobby podcast. Netflix describes it as the story of an online friendship that becomes love before Kirat turns detective to find the truth about her mysterious fiancé. The relationship was conducted through messages and calls and eventually affected Kirat’s work, daily life and plans to marry.
This is a catfishing case built around more than one false profile. The person communicating as “Bobby” also supplied supposed friends and relatives, creating a social world that appeared to confirm the relationship.
Who was the real Bobby?
Bobby Jandu was a real person
The real Bobby was Bobby Jandu, a cardiologist whose name and photographs were used without his involvement. Kirat already had a real-world connection to Jandu’s family: her cousin had dated his younger brother, JJ. That connection made the identity appear plausible and gave the impersonator personal details and social links to exploit.
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Jandu was not the online fiancé
The messages, calls and promises of marriage did not come from Jandu. During the discovery process, he met Kirat in person and saw that an image of him had been paired with a phone number that was not his. His reaction, quoted by TIME, was: “How could she pretend to be me for so long? And she’s a girl, doing it to her cousin. None of it made any sense.”
Who catfished Kirat Assi?
Simran Bhogal, Kirat’s cousin, was the person behind the false “Bobby” identity. In the documentary account, Simran eventually admitted that she had impersonated Bobby and the associated Facebook friends and family. She did not agree to be interviewed; the film uses an actor to represent her likeness.
The impersonation therefore involved a real family relationship between victim and perpetrator, not a stranger randomly selecting Kirat online. That closeness also helped the invented accounts seem credible for an unusually long period.
How the deception worked
A plausible first contact
In 2009, Kirat received a Facebook message from an account attributed to Bobby Jandu. The profile presented him as a cardiologist based in Kenya and the United Kingdom. What began as online contact developed into a relationship conducted through digital communication rather than ordinary in-person dating.
A network of accounts and explanations
After Simran told Kirat that “Bobby” had been shot in Kenya and moved to a New York hospital under witness protection, new accounts and supposed acquaintances supplied updates. The expanding cast made the central story harder to challenge because information appeared to come from several independent people.
Communication shaped around absence
Kirat sent voice memos and received text replies. The lack of normal conversation was explained as the result of supposed vocal-cord damage. These explanations allowed the relationship to continue without the ordinary evidence of a live, face-to-face partnership.
Control and escalating commitment
“Bobby” became controlling. Kirat was expected to report routine activities and send selfies, and she left her radio show after he objected to her interactions with guests. The relationship also moved toward marriage: Kirat created wedding vision boards and received an engagement ring.
Key timeline in the true story
| Year | What happened | Why it mattered |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Kirat received the first Facebook message from the account attributed to Bobby Jandu. | The long-running online relationship began. |
| 2009–2018 | Messages, calls and supporting accounts maintained the story of “Bobby,” including the shooting, hospitalisation and witness-protection explanations. | The deception became a networked identity rather than a single profile. |
| 2018 | A planned hotel meeting in Kensington failed; the receptionist said nobody by Bobby’s name was staying there. | The failed meeting prompted a more direct investigation. |
| 2018 | Kirat hired a private investigator, went to an address in Brighton and met Bobby Jandu and his wife, Sanj. | She encountered the real person whose identity had been used. |
| After the Brighton meeting | During a call from the fake Bobby, Jandu saw his own image displayed with a phone number that was not his. Kirat confronted Simran. | The evidence connected the online impersonation to the family member. |
| 2020 | Kirat took civil action. | The case moved into a formal legal dispute. |
| 2021 | She received compensation and a private apology. | The documented outcome was civil, not a criminal prosecution. |
How was the Sweet Bobby deception exposed?
The failed Kensington meeting
The immediate turning point was a supposed meeting at a Kensington hotel in 2018. When the receptionist said no guest named Bobby was staying there, the explanation surrounding the relationship no longer matched a basic, checkable fact.
Investigation and the Brighton encounter
Kirat hired a private investigator and went to an address in Brighton. There she met the real Bobby Jandu and his wife, Sanj. The encounter established that the person whose photographs had been used was living a separate life and had not been conducting the relationship.
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- Author: Fletcher, Jessica, and Donald Bain.
- Publisher: Signet
- Pages: 272
- Publication Date: 2000
- Edition: First Edition
The phone-number evidence and confrontation
During a call from the fake “Bobby,” Jandu saw his own image paired with a different phone number. Kirat then confronted Simran. In the documentary’s account, Simran admitted that she had been behind the identity and the related accounts and calls.
Kirat preserved nearly a decade of Skype messages, WhatsApp messages and Facebook screenshots before they disappeared. That archive helped document what had happened even as online material was removed.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why did Simran lie to Kirat?
No definitive motive is established in the documentary or in the cited reporting. TIME reports Kirat’s conclusion that she was “targeted just for somebody’s entertainment,” while also noting that the film does not answer why Simran carried out the catfishing.
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That uncertainty is important: the public record identifies who operated the false identity and describes the harm, but it does not prove a clinical diagnosis, financial motive or other explanation. Kirat has framed the case around accountability rather than sympathy, saying, “I’m not looking for sympathy. I’m looking for people to say this is wrong, we need to be making people accountable.” She also said she wanted to help break the stigma so victims would not be shamed.
What happened after Kirat discovered the truth?
Civil action and compensation
Kirat brought civil proceedings in 2020 and received compensation along with a private apology in 2021.
No criminal prosecution is documented here
The cited account says there were no police charges or prosecution. That distinction matters: compensation and an apology are the documented civil outcome, not a criminal conviction.
The documentary’s perspective
Simran declined to participate in an interview, so the film presents her through an actor rather than her own on-camera explanation. Kirat’s account and the preserved communications carry most of the narrative.
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Where can you watch Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare?
The film is available on Netflix. Netflix’s title page lists it as a 2024 British documentary and indicates streaming and offline-download availability. Catalog access and download options can vary by territory and subscription, so the Netflix listing in your country is the authoritative check for availability.
Quick Recap
What the case establishes—and what it does not
- Established: Bobby Jandu was the real person whose identity and photographs were used.
- Established: Kirat’s cousin Simran Bhogal operated the “Bobby” identity and associated accounts, according to the documentary account of her admission.
- Established: The deception began in 2009, was challenged after a failed meeting in 2018, and led to civil action in 2020 and compensation plus a private apology in 2021.
- Not established: A definitive reason Simran created and sustained the deception.
- Not documented in the cited account: Police charges or a criminal prosecution.
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