Quick Take
- Cult.fit founder Rishabh Telang denies forgery allegations in an FIR filed by ex co-founder Deepak Poduval.
- Bellandur Police, Bengaluru registered the FIR on August 6, 2026, citing forgery, cheating and conspiracy.
- The matter is unproven and awaits court review as Cult.fit prepares a Rs 950 Cr IPO.
In This Article
Cult.fit founder denies forgery allegations made in a police FIR by his former co-founder and brother-in-law, Deepak Poduval, on August 6, 2026. The Bellandur Police in Bengaluru registered the case.
The FIR names Rishabh Telang and Cult Fitness Private Limited, the original 2015 entity behind the Cult brand. It cites allegations of forgery, cheating and criminal conspiracy tied to documents used to wind up that company. A court has not yet ruled on the matter, according to the Free Press Journal report.
StartupFeed Insight
The legal question and the market question are separate here, and readers should not merge them. The FIR targets Cult Fitness Private Limited, a struck-off entity from 2019, not Cult.fit Limited, the company filing to list. StartupFeed expects SEBI reviewers and lead bankers to seek written disclosure of this dispute inside the updated RHP, since any founder-linked criminal complaint is a material fact for retail investors. Watch for a formal risk-factor line on this FIR before the price band drops, likely within the next two to three months. If Cult.fit stays silent on it in the RHP, that omission itself becomes the bigger governance story. By Harshvardhan kothari.
FIR Breakdown: What the Complaint Alleges
An FIR is a First Information Report, the police record that starts a criminal probe in India. Deepak Poduval filed this FIR at Bengaluru’s Bellandur Police Station on August 6, 2026. It names Rishabh Telang and Cult Fitness Private Limited as accused.
Poduval alleges that filings made with the Registrar of Companies carried forged versions of his signature. He claims these documents wound up Cult Fitness without his consent, erasing his 50% stake without payment. The complaint lists forgery, cheating and criminal conspiracy. No court has tested these claims yet.
| Detail | Fact | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Complainant | Deepak Poduval | Co-founder and brother-in-law of Telang |
| Accused | Rishabh Telang, Cult Fitness Pvt Ltd | The original 2015 entity |
| FIR Date | August 6, 2026 | Bellandur Police, Bengaluru |
| Allegations | Forgery, cheating, conspiracy | Yet to be decided by a court |
| Disputed Filings | RoC winding-up documents | Signatures claimed as forged |
The most striking point is the family link. Telang and Poduval are brothers-in-law, which turns a corporate dispute into a personal one.
About Cult.fit
Cult.fit is India’s largest fitness and active lifestyle platform by centre count as of March 31, 2026, per the Redseer Report. Founded in 2016 by Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori, the Bengaluru firm runs 708 fitness centres across 77 cities plus the Cultsport products brand. Backers include Temasek, Accel and Tata Digital.
What Does This Mean for the Cult.fit IPO?
The dispute lands at a sensitive moment because Cult.fit filed its Draft Red Herring Prospectus with SEBI on July 6, 2026. A DRHP is the draft offer document filed before an IPO. Cult.fit has drawn a clear line between itself and the accused entity.
The accused entity, Cult Fitness Pvt Ltd, was a separate independent company of the complainant himself and we did not have any ownership or management control, Cult.fit said in its statement.
Cult.fit added that its transaction with Cult Fitness ran under contractual arrangements, with payment made and acknowledged by the complainant. The company said neither it nor its subsidiary is an accused in the FIR. Still, a founder-linked criminal complaint can invite SEBI questions during the review.
Why Does Rishabh Telang Reject the Charges?
Rishabh Telang has strongly denied the forgery allegations. He says Poduval knew about both the CultFit Healthcare transaction and the later winding-up of Cult Fitness. Telang claims he holds correspondence proving this involvement.
Telang pointed to an email from the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) dated March 12, 2020, which acknowledged the company’s closure and was shared with both founders. He also said Poduval received payment under the deal, a claim Poduval disputes. Telang questioned the FIR’s timing too. He linked it to a separate property dispute that his sister, who is Poduval’s wife, filed against Poduval on July 1, 2026.
How Strong Is the Cult.fit IPO Filing?
The Cult.fit IPO plans a fresh issue of up to Rs 950 Cr ($114 Mn) and an Offer for Sale of up to 17.86 crore shares. The company narrowed its net loss sharply, which strengthens its listing case despite the legal noise.
| Metric | FY25 | FY26 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue from Operations | Rs 1,263 Cr | Rs 1,720.6 Cr |
| Net Loss | Rs 480.8 Cr | Rs 251.9 Cr |
| Adjusted EBITDA Margin | -2.8% | +8.4% |
| Paid Fitness Members | NA | 9.87 Lakh |
Revenue rose +36.3% YoY in FY26, per the DRHP data reported by the filing summary. Cult.fit was last valued near Rs 12,600 Cr ($1.5 Bn) after a $47.6 Mn Series G in March 2026. What sets Cult.fit apart is its dual model spanning both fitness services and physical products, a mix few Indian rivals match.
What’s Next
SEBI will now review the DRHP and issue observations before Cult.fit files its Red Herring Prospectus. Only then will the price band and issue dates appear. The FIR runs on a separate track, and the police probe could take months before any charge sheet. Will Cult.fit name this dispute as a formal risk factor in its RHP?
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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. StartupFeed and its authors are not SEBI-registered investment advisors. The analysis above is based on publicly available information and should not be the sole basis for any investment decision. Please consult a SEBI-registered financial advisor before making investment decisions.
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