The Cult.fit Legal Mess: Family Feud, Forged Sign Claim And Rs 950-Crore IPO

Ahead of its Rs 950-crore initial public offering (IPO), fitness unicorn Cult.fit has run into legal trouble.

On August 6, police registered an FIR against Cult co-founder Rishabh Telang at Bengaluru's Bellandur Police Station. It was filed by Deepak Poduval, who co-founded Cult Fitness with Telang in 2015. Poduval is also Telang's brother-in-law. 

The complaint accuses Telang of forgery, cheating and criminal conspiracy. According to the complaint, documents filed with the Registrar of Companies to shut down Cult Fitness Private Limited carried signatures that Poduval says were forged. He claims the documents were used without his knowledge or consent. Poduval alleges that the closure wiped out his stake in the original company, and that he received no compensation for it.

The dispute dates back to 2016. That year, CultFit Healthcare Private Limited, a subsidiary of what is now Cult.fit, acquired certain assets and intellectual property from Cult Fitness. This included the "Cult - The Workout Station" brand name.

The FIR has surfaced at a sensitive time for Cult.fit. The company filed its draft papers for an IPO only weeks ago. 

Cult.fit Denies Charges

In a statement shared with NDTV, Cult.fit clarified that it has not received any communication from authorities regarding the case, and that it learned of the matter only through media queries.

The statement adds that neither Cult.fit Limited nor its subsidiaries, including CultFit Healthcare Private Limited, is named as an accused in the FIR. It said Cult Fitness Private Limited, the entity named in the complaint, was Poduval's own company. Cult.fit said it never held any ownership or management control over it.

On the 2016 deal, the company said its subsidiary bought the assets and brand rights "under appropriate contractual arrangements and for consideration which was duly paid and also acknowledged by the complainant." As far as Cult.fit is concerned, that transaction is closed.

'Timing Of FIR Appears Mala Fide'

Rishabh Telang has also issued a detailed statement, shared exclusively with NDTV, denying the allegations. "I categorically deny having forged his signatures on the documents as alleged in the FIR," Telang said. He said Poduval knew exactly what was happening at every stage. "Deepak was fully involved in the transactions with Cultfit Healthcare Pvt. Ltd. as well as the winding up of Cult Fitness Pvt. Ltd., of which I possess multiple correspondence," he said.

Telang backed this up with a specific date. He said the Ministry of Corporate Affairs sent an email on March 12, 2020, acknowledging that Cult Fitness had been wound up. That email, he said, went to both him and Poduval. "The acceptance of the winding up of the company was acknowledged by the MCA via email on 12th March 2020, which was shared with both Deepak and me, once again underlining his involvement in the process at the time," Telang said.

He also disputed the claim that Poduval was never paid. "Deepak was consistently involved in the dealings with Cultfit Healthcare Pvt. Ltd., and he has received payment from the company as part of the agreement," Telang said.

Then he turned the spotlight on the timing of the FIR itself. Telang said there is a separate property dispute running in parallel, filed by his own sister (Poduval's wife), on July 1, 2026. He believes that case is connected to why the FIR landed when it did. "The timing of the FIR appears mala fide given that a legal case for settlement of property against Deepak Poduval was made by my sister on 1st July 2026. This ongoing case appears to have triggered the current action, given that Deepak was involved in the filings and winding down proceedings of Cult Fitness Pvt. Ltd., as indicated by receipt of documentation from authorities in 2020," Telang said.

Telang said the fight would now play out in court, not in the press. "I will also address the allegations made in the FIR in the appropriate legal forum as part of the ongoing court proceedings. The allegations are entirely without merit, and I remain confident that the facts will emerge through due process," he said.

He closed with a warning of his own. "Given the serious and defamatory nature of these allegations, I am also evaluating all legal remedies available to protect my reputation," Telang said.