For 12 years, Hemant Modi kept performing without a pause. What he did on camera not only paid his bills, it also kept him out of jail. From Ahmedabad's stages to Mumbai's film sets, he had a dozen names. Spandan Kumar one day. Spandan Modi the next. Twinkle Dave, when he wanted to sound like a star. He chased auditions, sent portfolios to producers, took any role anyone would give him.
What none knew was that Hemant Modi was a murder convict who had in 2014 walked out of prison on a 30-day parole and never returned. Since then, the parole jumper is said to have acted in six Hindi films, one South Indian production, 10 Gujarati films, 27 TV commercials, 26 stage dramas, more than 3,000 stage shows, and 14 short films. He ran a YouTube channel, Amdavadi Uncle, on which he uploaded audition videos. He even put up performance clips on Instagram.
His escape from justice spanned over a decade, during which he built a career in the entertainment industry. The case highlights the challenges in tracking fugitives who manage to blend into creative fields. Authorities were unaware of his whereabouts until a tip-off led to his arrest. The investigation is ongoing to determine how he managed to secure roles without being detected.
