Kandivli yoga guru runs off with annual fees of over 700 people

A fitness studio in Kandivli is making its patrons exercise in the most unique way mdash by having them run from pillar to post for their money after abruptly shutting down last week The studio named Pride is located in Mahavir Nagar and its owner Vineet Shah is nowhere to be found after promising to accommodate approximately 700 members of his gym in other local fitness studiosThe fitness studio which offers classes for yoga power yoga aerobics dance and zumba has been active for the past three years and has around 700 registered members most of them Almost all of them have paid at least Rs 3000 to Rs 4000 as the entire years fee Several members have been coming to the studio since its inception and had paid the annual fee because they trusted Shah Others have joined the studio in June after being lured by flashy discountsAlso ReadMumbai Crime Thieves hide valuables in sand caught when trying to retrieve it in JuhuVineet Shah owner of Pride fitness studio has disappearedNothing but cheatingSatish Sharma a retired LIC officer joined Pride for yoga in January as it is near his residence He has paid Rs 3000 in yearly fees I never thought this man would shut everything without giving a proper reason to his customers I understand that any issue could have happened but the least a noble person could do is communicate it to the people concerned and refund their money if he is unable to provide services any longerIn May he had started selling a sixmonth membership for just Rs 500 Several people had joined because of it And in just a month the classes have shut down This is nothing but cheating said SharmaPayal Zaveri who joined in June on the heavily discounted offer said I took the membership and four of my neighbours joined the studio on my word We started classes on June 10 and around July 15 they shut down without any intimation If the situation was so bad that the studio was going to be closed they shouldnt have given out more memberships with such lucrative offersAlso ReadMumbai Man who duped a businessman allowed to travel abroad before trialUrmila Shah who has been a member of the Mahavir Nagar branch for the past two years said Recently there were days when the airconditioner was not working and other such problems kept occuring but were told that was happening due to maintenance she saidOther branches shut tooSeveral members have been coming to the studio since its inception and had paid the annual fee because they trusted Shah Pic Nimesh DaveWhen members of the Mahavir Nagar branch started looking deeper into the studio they found out that there were three more branches of it in Jayraj Nagar and Pai Nagar in Borivali and in Charkop which shut a year ago Purnima Panchal who used to go to the Charkop branch revealed I was a member there for three years It shut down a year ago after which we were asked to join the Mahavir Nagar center But who knew a similar situation would occur here too within a year I have already paid for the running year of which six months are remainingMahavir Nagar members got to know that the centre in Jayraj Nagar also downed its shutters Preeti K a member of the Jayraj Nagar branch said The centre closed around the same time as Mahavir Nagar without giving us any intimation Similar issues are being faced by members at our centre All of these annoyed members are now trying to reach out to the Pai Nagar centre members to figure out the situation thereRaw dealFrustrated members kept calling Shah but did not receive any response on the issue Some of them then approached local Shiv Sena activist Bipin Doshi My office is on the same road as the fitness studio I was shocked when so many women approached me with their issues All of them had receipts of payment made for the entire year Many of them told me of the new offers too which clearly hint at the malicious intentions of the ownerThe complainants and I then went to the Charkop police station After giving us a patient hearing the senior police officer there called Shah for a meeting in which it was decided that he will either open the centre in eight days or accommodate all members in other nearby facilities But shockingly when some of them approached nearby fitness centres they were told no such deal has been finalized with Pride Fitness Studio And now the owner is absconding once again as his number remains unavailable Doshi is now in the process of collecting names and receipts of all members to submit a formal complaint to the Charkop police station This is a huge fraud he addedSaroj Chitroda whose family of three went to Pride said My husband daughter and I had joined in January and paid R4000 each for a year We immediately approached a centre in Shimpoli where we were supposed to get accommodated But to our dismay we were informed no such agreement had been finalised with Pride told SarojProcess will take timeSenior police inspector at the Charkop police station Hemant Sawant said The complainants approached us and we called the owner of the fitness studio as well Following the meeting it was decided that the owner will accommodate these members in other nearby fitness studios since they have already paid an entire years fee The process is going to take some time However if the owner does not deliver on his promises we will take further actionmidday tried to reach out to Shah repeatedly but he remained unavailable for commentVOICESPayal Zaveri memberIf the situation was so bad that the studio was going to be closed they shouldnt have given out more memberships with such lucrative offersSatish sharma memberIn May he started selling a sixmonths membership for Rs 500 In just a month the classes have shut down This is nothing but cheatingRs 3kAverage yearly fee for the studioCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates