Kerala YouTuber Diya Krishna’s Rs6.9m jewellery store scam: The dark side of influencer fame?

Malayalam actor and BJP politician G. Krishna Kumar and his daughter, lifestyle influencer and entrepreneur Diya Krishna, are at the center of a high-profile legal controversy.

Diya has accused four employees of her boutique, Oh By Ozy, of defrauding her of ₹6.9 million (Rs 69 lakh), which is approximately Dh303,600.

The accused have responded with a counter-complaint, alleging abduction, extortion, and caste-based abuse by Krishna Kumar, his wife, and their four daughters. 

According to an FIR filed by Krishna Kumar on June 3, four staff members — Vineetha, Divya, Radhakumar, and Adarsh — allegedly diverted customer payments from July 2024 onward. They are accused of replacing the store’s official QR code with their personal GPay UPI codes.

Speaking to the media, Krishnakumar revealed that Diya, who is currently eight months pregnant, had stepped away from the day-to-day operations of her jewellery store. He said CCTV footage and videos capturing the employees admitting to the alleged fraud were submitted as evidence to the police.

He explained the timing of the scam, stating, “Since Diya is pregnant, she stopped going to the shop. The swapping of QR codes happened during that period.”

Krishnakumar added that once the fraud was discovered, the employees returned ₹832,000 (around Dh36,978). He also disclosed that on May 31, one of the employee’s husbands threatened Diya over the phone.

He further said, “These employees told customers that the store’s QR code was corrupted and forced them to send payments to their personal accounts. We uncovered this when a friend of Diya’s purchased an item and noticed something suspicious.”

In an emotional interview, Diya said she had treated the accused employees “like younger sisters.” She described how a family friend raised concerns after a suspicious payment request.

Diya posted an Instagram story urging customers to flag unusual transactions. The response was swift — over a thousand messages and screenshots poured in, showing that money had been redirected to private accounts.

“This wasn’t just about money,” she said. “It was about broken trust.”

On May 29, Diya met the three former employees at her flat, claiming the meeting was peaceful and later shifted to her father’s office due to privacy rules in her residential complex. However, the women allege that Diya, had misused their bank accounts and home addresses for business purposes, under the guise of tax evasion and customer support.

They had resigned a day earlier, on May 28, citing overwork and mistreatment. Following this, Diya allegedly demanded ₹500,000 and threatened to defame them on Instagram.

On May 30, after handing over the money, the women say they were taken to an office, held for several hours, and forced to pay an additional ₹382,000. They claim a man posing as a police officer coerced them into signing cheques worth ₹1.5 million each and making false statements.

In their police complaint filed on June 2, the women allege they were forcibly taken, had their phones confiscated, and were threatened with death. Diya and her father filed a counter-complaint on June 3.

The former employees further allege that Diya and her family routinely made casteist remarks and fostered a toxic work environment.

“We planned to resign after Diya’s delivery,” one woman said, “but we couldn’t take the insults anymore.”

One employee added: “For Diya, everything — even our distress — was vlog content.”

Diya has rejected the allegations, stating, “We didn’t abduct anyone. They came voluntarily. We have CCTV and video evidence to prove it.”

She added that the counter-complaint was filed only after their FIR. “If they’re telling the truth, let them show proof.”

The Museum Police in Thiruvananthapuram are investigating complaints from both Diya Krishna and her staff. Diya and her father, Krishna Kumar, have submitted video evidence and payment screenshots, while the employees have filed charges of extortion, abduction, and caste-based abuse.

Manorama News reports that the employees allegedly earned Diya’s trust but diverted customer payments through personal QR codes for unlawful gain.

The FIR also states that Adarsh, husband of the main accused, threatened Diya by phone on May 31, 2025. Krishna Kumar claims about ₹76.9 million was siphoned from the business, with ₹7.9 million returned after confrontation, and maintains they have proof of their interactions without any force.

The case has drawn widespread attention, revealing the darker side and internal struggles of influencer-run businesses.

Diya Krishna rose to fame during the pandemic, gaining a huge following alongside her family through YouTube and Instagram. Their content — often revolving around lifestyle, travel, and family — earned each member a YouTube Silver Play Button.

She later launched Oh By Ozy, a jewellery brand, leveraging her social media popularity. However, controversy has followed her career.

In 2023, her sister Ahaana’s viral video led to backlash and accusations of bullying and elitism, with former classmates speaking out against the family. In 2024, her father’s caste-related comments caused public outrage, worsened by Diya’s defensive response.

She also came under fire for misrepresenting historical facts in a travel vlog and for a sarcastic remark made in a London park video.

Despite these issues, Diya retains a strong online following. Following the latest controversy, she has urged her supporters to come forward and file police complaints in her defence.