Scam 1992, the Sony Liv web series, is receiving rave reviews from everyone. From the star cast to dialogues, the show is a treat to watch as it brings to life one of the biggest financial scams in India.
The resemblance of the show’s characters to their original counterparts is so uncanny that we soon make a connection in our minds.
From Harshad’s colleagues, friends and family to political figures, it was not difficult to identify who’s who. Except one, Swamiji.
Yes, I am talking of the person who guided Harshad on phone from Delhi.
The person whom Harshad Mehta believed in, till his end.
And as per popular opinion, the person who might have betrayed Harshad in the end, too.
Many people asked this question on Twitter as to who Swamiji could be.
From the information available on the internet and views of a few netizens, it can be inferred that Swamiji was apparently Chandraswami. The astrologer who was also a close aide and spiritual advisor to the then PM PV Narsimha Rao.
In his interview to Sucheta Dalal, Harshad clearly said he was getting help from Delhi. And throughout the series we saw him communicating with Swamiji in Delhi when he was in trouble.
Not much is known about his early life and entry into politics, but some sources suggest that he was born to a moneylender at Behror in Rajasthan. Chandraswami once even claimed that he spent his youth meditating in the jungles of Bihar and acquired ‘tantric’ powers.
It is believed that Chandraswami built his ashram in Qutub Institutional Area of Delhi, soon after PV Narsimha Rao became the prime minister.
During the 1980s and most of 1990s, Chandraswami had immense influence on Indian politics. He was apparently also in touch with several foreign diplomats and politicians, including former British PM Margaret Thatcher.
While his power and fame rose infinitely during the mid-90s, in 1996, he was arrested on charges of defrauding Lakhubhai Pathak, a London-based Indian-origin businessman, of $100,000. As more details emerged, he was also charged with violation of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA).
His downfall had begun and in 1997, the Congress party alleged that Chandraswami was involved in the conspiracy that led to the assassination of former PM Rajiv Gandhi.
He apparently also gave spiritual advice to the Sultan of Brunei, Dawood Ibrahim, actress Elizabeth Taylor, British PM Margaret Thatcher and arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi, along with several other Bollywood and Hollywood celebrities.
For almost the last two decades he kept a low profile in Delhi.
Chandraswami was last in the news in 2014 when the Delhi Police probed a complaint by a businessman that he was robbed off gemstones worth Rs 3 crore at his Delhi ashram.
He died in May 2017 of multiple organ failure at a hospital in Delhi.
All these are merely theories based on the popular opinion on internet. We cannot be sure as to who Swamiji was because nothing has been explicitly mentioned in the show.
But as more people get curious to know about him, let’s hope that the makers of show answer their questions, maybe.