Ahmedabad Police Flag Fraud Risk Behind Viral 'Rent A Garba Partner' Ads

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Navratri hasn't even started, and a new online trend is already making cyber cops uneasy.

Social media posts advertising a "Rent A Garba Partner" service have gone viral across Gujarat's Ahmedabad and Surat in the run up to Navratri 2026, offering companionship for a fixed fee. The Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Cell has since cautioned the public about the potential for fraud, while local groups have separately criticised the trend for commercialising a religious festival.

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What The Viral Ads Are Offering

The posts, circulating mainly on Instagram, lay out tiered packages for anyone who doesn't want to dance alone this Navratri. The Silver option costs Rs 1,000 for two hours of garba companionship, with matching outfits and basic dance lessons thrown in. The Gold package, at Rs 1,500, stretches to four hours and adds Instagram reels, photographs and even a scripted "backstory" about how the pair supposedly met. The Platinum tier goes up to Rs 2,000 and claims to cover an entire night, with some versions promising help with outfits, public gestures, and a safe drop home.

It reads like a service built entirely for social media optics, and that's exactly where the concern comes in.

Why Police Are Calling It A Fraud Risk

Navratri season is prime hunting ground for cyber fraud in Gujarat every year, and cyber crime officials use the run up to the festival to warn citizens about fake Garba passes, suspicious payment links, malicious APK files and fraudulent shopping deals. The "Rent A Garba Partner" posts have been folded into that same warning, with police describing the underlying pattern as a form of fraud and advising people to stay away from it.

No verified case of anyone actually losing money to this specific ad has been confirmed yet, and it isn't clear whether the posts are a genuine paid service or content made purely to go viral. But that uncertainty is precisely the point cyber cops are making. This kind of setup, an attractive companionship offer, a tiered price list, and a payment made upfront to a stranger online, is exactly the template fraudsters have used before.

This Isn't A New Playbook

Just weeks earlier, Hyderabad's Police Commissioner had issued a similar warning about "Rent A Boyfriend" ads circulating on Instagram and Telegram, offering everything from a coffee date to a full day of companionship at prices ranging from a few hundred rupees to over four thousand. According to that advisory, the men in the photos were often AI-generated or lifted from the internet, and once a woman paid a "booking fee" or "security deposit," the account would go silent and block her.

The concern with "Rent A Garba Partner" is that it could follow the exact same script, dressed up for festival season instead.

What To Watch Out For

Cyber crime officials advise treating any online companionship or festival-offer ad with the same caution: avoid sending advance payments to unverified accounts, don't share personal details, phone numbers or photographs with strangers online, and be wary of any offer that seems designed mainly to look good on social media rather than deliver a real service. Anyone who does lose money to such an ad is advised to contact the national cyber crime helpline at 1930 or file a complaint at cybercrime.gov.in.