How fugitive Hemant Modi built a second life in Bollywood for 12 years after fleeing parole

Highlights

• Hemant Modi was arrested after allegedly evading authorities for 12 years following parole
• Police say he adopted a new identity and worked as actor Spandan Modi
• Investigators claim he appeared in films with Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan and Mohanlal
• Authorities traced him in Ahmedabad after a tip-off reportedly led to his identification

A life sentence gave way to a disappearance

For more than a decade, police say Hemant Nagindas Purshottamdas Modi lived a life few would have expected after a murder conviction. Arrested this week by Ahmedabad’s Detection of Crime Branch, investigators claim the 54-year-old spent years creating a new identity and working in films while remaining a fugitive.

Modi was convicted in 2008 alongside his brother Sachin Modi and five others in the murder case of Narendra alias Nano Yashwant Kamble, linked to a killing in June 2005. All seven were sentenced to life imprisonment.

He was initially lodged in Sabarmati Central Jail before being shifted to Mehsana Jail. In July 2014, the Gujarat High Court granted him 30 days of parole. According to police, he walked out and never returned.

While the other convicts later completed their sentences and returned to society, investigators say Modi disappeared.

The making of Spandan Modi

Police say Hemant Modi first stayed in Gujarat’s Patan district before changing identities and moving to Ahmedabad. Investigators claim he briefly worked at a private company and lived as a paying guest before turning to a long-standing interest in acting.

The journey reportedly began in theatre and later took him to Mumbai. By 2017, police say he had started securing supporting roles and introducing himself as Spandan Modi.

Investigators claim he worked in Thugs of Hindostan with Amitabh Bachchan and Aamir Khan, Jayeshbhai Jordaar starring Ranveer Singh and Boman Irani, and Metro… In Dino featuring Aditya Roy Kapur and Sara Ali Khan.

Police also linked him to L2: Empuraan with Mohanlal and upcoming films Lahore 1947 with Sunny Deol and Tu Hai Meri Kiran starring Sonakshi Sinha. Investigators further claim he worked in Gujarati films, theatre productions and the web series Taskari with Emraan Hashmi.

The search ended with a familiar face

According to investigators, Modi left very little digital trace. Police say he distanced himself from family, divorced his wife and maintained almost no online presence, making him difficult to track.

The breakthrough came after he returned to Ahmedabad in 2025. Authorities say someone recognised him and informed police.

Investigators detained him and compared his physical features with prison records. Police say the details matched and that he later admitted his identity.

For years, investigators claim Hemant Modi managed to stay out of sight while appearing before audiences and cameras. In the end, they say it was not technology or social media that caught up with him, but recognition from someone who remembered the past.