The why behind Simran Bhogal's Sweet Bobby Catfishing scheme is almost as shocking as what.
Sweet Bobby: My Catfishing Nightmare joins hits like The Menendez Brothers and Mr. McMahon as yet another mind-bending true-to-life documentary story that has fans talking.
Sweet Bobby follows the shocking true story of radio presenter Kirat Assi who was catfished (the act of someone impersonating another online) by her cousin for over a decade, where she was convinced to have found love in the form of an online suitor named Bobbi.
The Reasoning Behind Simran Bhogal's Catfishing Scheme
In Sweet Bobby: My Catifishing Nightmare, a terrifying tale unfolds as Kirat Assi was fooled by her cousin Simran Bhogal for more than ten years, as Bhogal tricked Assi that she was a potential romantic partner named Bobby.
However, why anyone would want to do this to someone (let alone their family member) may be confusing to some.
Luckily Assi has addressed some of the thinking that she believes went into Bhogal's thinking.
Speaking on the podcast the documentary is based on (vas transcribed by Mirror), Assi posited that both she and Bhogal were "in a dark place" when the catfishing began, and it likely was an effort on the part of her cousin to create a "fantasy world" that "was bringing [them] both some kind of happiness or joy:"
"It was the same as what she said when she confessed, that she was in a dark place… She honestly believed we were both in a dark place and living in this alternative reality or this fantasy world that she created was bringing us both some kind of happiness or joy."
She said that her Bhogal has made it clear that "she would change everything if she could," ultimately saying she regrets her transgressions:
"It was an emotional letter and it was all like she would change everything if she could and it was all very gushing and 'I’m sorry for all the hurt and pain I’ve caused', and all what you’d expect someone to say."
With all that said though, that is just a theory on the part of Assi.
In the only public statement written on Bhogal's behalf about the deception, it was written, "[This is] a private matter:"
"She considers it a private matter and strongly objects to what she describes as numerous unfounded and damaging accusations."
In other interviews, she has also remarked, "I have absolutely no idea [why Bhogal did this]" and has "given up trying to work it out" (via RadioTimes):
"I have absolutely no idea [why she did this] and I've given up trying to work it out. There's nothing she could say to justify what she did... She had ample opportunities to stop. She could see the damage she was doing. She could see the distress she was causing. She chose not to."
This came after Assi suffered great financial and personal strife because of the catfish event, even, at one point, financing a trip from New York to the UK to potentially meet the man Bhogal was posing as.
Sweet Bobby: My Catfishing Nightmare is now streaming on Netflix.
