In 2010, Harkirat Assi, a local radio host in London, befriended a man named Bobby through social media; a relationship that became romantic over time, without ever meeting him in person. For almost a decade, Kirat, as she is known, was caught in a web of deceit and manipulation, which, as it eventually turned out, was masterminded by her cousin. Kirat’s ordeal was documented by journalist Alexi Mostrous for a true-crime podcast called Sweet Bobby, which is now being brought to the screen by Netflix.

The six-part documentary, Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare, will drop on Netflix on October 16 at 12.30 pm (IST). Directed by Lyttanya Shannon (Subnormal: A British Scandal), executive produced by Rebecca North (American Nightmare), and produced by Kiran Sira (Murder, Mystery and My Family), the documentary will take viewers through what Kirat experienced, with photos, screenshots, and exclusive interviews with her and her friends and family, who watched the doomed relationship unfold in real time.

Interestingly, the Bobby that Kirat thought she was in a relationship with and even got ‘engaged’ to, was a real person, but he had no idea that his identity was being used in an elaborate catfishing scheme. Bobby, as it turns out, is a cardiologist, who has never spoken to Kirat. The worst bit, though, is that the perpetrator of the scam was someone Kirat knew and trusted – her cousin, Simran Bhogal.

Over nearly a decade, Simran created storylines and characters for why Bobby could not meet Kirat in real life, while also being the latter’s trusted confidante. It was only in 2018 that Bhogal came clean to Kirat, following which, the latter took her to court in a civil suit after police refrained from filing criminal charges, stating that the real victim in the case was Bobby, whose identity had been stolen. The case was settled out of court, with Bhogal paying Kirat an undisclosed amount in damages.

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