This is a real life experience shared with the CLN news desk by an extremely dashing, intelligent and promising young adult with starry eyes and an ambition to fulfill. We have obviously withheld the name but are delighted that the individual concerned has a good opportunity to grow and realise his aspirations to potential.
This is not an uncommon story for youngsters these days. Parents make huge sacrifices to secure their childrens education, in many instances relocating to a city and worse by mortgaging their properties to meet the fees and related expenses. Prevalent amongst many communities – Tulu, Sardars, Parsis, Jains and Marwaris, Sindhis and many more, have Career Guidance Centres in their respective Communities. Some are fortunate to even have a “mentoring” programme. This is where well established organizations like the Kodava Samajas and The Coorg Education Fund – collectively find platforms for career counselling, guidance and mentoring.
Extraordinary young students should be given adequate financial support and in general aptitudes must be assessed to seek job oriented education. Everyone gets an expensive degree these days, but parents and children should seek an outcome based education where a job is in place before the final exams are taken. Skills based education that is more entrepreneurial in nature is a real alternative to supplementing the agricultural income that most of us are privy too. – CLN Newsdesk
I travelled all the way from Coorg for a Job Interview – what happened next left me disappointed and disillusioned.
My day began with mist hanging low over the hills and rain gently tapping against the window. I had just woken up early, thinking about how I wanted my day to look.
After spending my morning at the estate, I was on my way home around noon when my phone rang. It was an unidentified number. Naturally, I was curious.
“Hi Anand, I’m Reethu, HR from XYZ Technologies.”
My mood instantly changed — a mix of nervousness and hope.
“You have been selected for a walk-in interview in Bangalore.”
She asked me to come the next day. Without hesitation, I said “yes”!
Coming from a humble middle-class background, that one call genuinely made my day. I rushed to my parents and, with excitement, told them, “I have an interview tomorrow. I need to reach Bangalore by tonight.”
Before leaving, I called the recruiter again and asked her to share the job description and company details so I could prepare myself properly. She said she would send them by EOD.
I even told her, “I’m travelling all the way from Coorg for this.”
She reassuringly replied – “Okay”.
I packed my bags and started my journey.
Sitting by the window on the bus, I kept imagining how I would present myself, what questions they might ask, what my next corporate chapter could look like and where this opportunity might take me.
For a while, I wasn’t travelling to Bangalore for an interview.
I was travelling towards an exciting dream.
I reached Bangalore late that night and went straight to bed, hoping to wake up early for the day I had been waiting for.
But before leaving for the interview, I decided to check the location once again.
That’s when things started feeling strange.
The address looked suspicious. I checked the company’s website and other available information. To my surprise, the company appeared to be based in Chennai, and I couldn’t independently verify a functioning Bangalore office.
Then I opened the location link.
The pin took me to an area around Brookbond, and the exact location appeared to point towards a jewellery store.
That was the moment I stopped and thought:
“Am I actually walking into a job interview, or am I walking into a trap?”
I started searching further — Reddit, online reviews, company information and other sources. I found discussions from other job seekers describing similar recruitment drives and raising concerns about registration fees, original document collection and further payment demands.
I was lucky.
I hadn’t reached the location yet. But I couldn’t stop thinking about how easily this could have gone wrong.
Sometimes, when we are excited about an opportunity, we don’t stop to question the details.
That is one thing this experience taught me.
So, to every job seeker and working professional looking for a new opportunity, please take a few minutes to verify:
1. Official company-domain email confirmation
2. Exact and verifiable office address
3. Official job description
4. Recruiter’s designation and company identity
5. Confirmation that the recruiter is authorised to conduct the interview
A job search is already emotionally exhausting. When someone gives you hope and you travel hundreds of kilometres believing in that opportunity, finding out that something doesn’t add up can be extremely disturbing.
We are not just travelling for an interview.
We are travelling with hope, time, money and a dream of a better future.
And that hope deserves to be respected.
– Anonymous
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Hello all! 🙏
This is a free Career Guidance Webinar organized by the Kaveri Placement & Career Planning Committee, Kodava Samaja Bangalore, especially for students who have completed/passed 10th, 12th/PUC and Graduation, along with parents.
📌 Webinar: Wednesday, 16th September 2026
⏰ Time: 7:00 PM | Online on Zoom
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These are very common scams these days, hence people have to be very careful and vigilant when you accept any unknown calls on your phone these days. It is always better to search the number on true caller and confirm the caller identity and red flags raised by people for the number before you act on it . Due to social networking sites our personal details are exposed to outside world and scamsters like these trap youngsters .Hence please be careful when you respond to any such calls or emails that promises job opportunities or lucrative returns on investments where people tend to respond fast without preliminary investigations.
As a job seeker this article hit hard. We know what it means to keep applying waiting for calls, preparing for interviews and holding on to every opportunity as a possible turning points in our lives.
To spend your hard earned money, precious time and enormous effort, travelling for an opportunity, only to discover that you have been deceived is heartbreaking. The financial loss hurts, but the emotional betrayal hurts even more. And those who exploit someone’s unemployment and dreams – remember you are not just taking their money, you are playing with someone’s hope, dignity and future.
A very timely and thought-provoking article. For a young person travelling from Coorg to Bengaluru, an interview is not just a journey—it carries the hopes, sacrifices and expectations of an entire family.
This experience highlights the importance of career guidance, mentoring and verifying opportunities before committing time and money. Our community organisations can play a valuable role in guiding youngsters towards genuine, skill-based and outcome-oriented careers.
Every young person carries a dream. That dream deserves to be respected and protected.
As an HR professional, reading your story is deeply disheartening. Recruitment should be a bridge to new beginnings, not a tool for exploitation. It is incredibly painful to see candidates invest their time, money, and hope, only to have their ambitions weaponised against them by bad actors. What you experienced is completely unacceptable and stands against everything true HR professionals work to uphold. You did exactly the right thing by trusting your intuition and doing your due diligence. The five-point verification checklist you shared is spot-on and should be standard practice for every job seeker today.
To anyone navigating the job market, please remember: legitimate organizations will never demand registration fees, mandate paid training as a hiring condition, or ask to hold your original documents.
Thank you for your bravery in sharing this. Your vigilance saved you from a trap, and your story will undoubtedly protect others. Hold onto your drive and ambition. The right, respectful corporate opportunity is out there waiting for you
A powerful wake-up call. It is heartbreaking to see ambitious job seekers—investing their family’s hope and hard-earned savings—preyed upon by scam recruitment drives. Job verification before travel is non-negotiable, and kudos to CLN Newsdesk for turning a painful lesson into an essential warning.
Education cannot just be about chasing degrees; it must build practical skills and direct pathways to real employment.
I’ve witnessed this firsthand.
During my hotelier days in Madikeri, I recruited and trained raw local talent from Kodagu. Though parents initially objected to entry-level tasks like clearing tables, those same youth now run top resorts, work for global airlines, lead corporate offices, and own travel businesses. Today, their parents thank me.
We must move beyond telling our youth to “get educated” and start actively building their careers. Through strong mentorship, clear guidance, and real opportunities, every professional and community can help unlock this potential. Their future is our shared responsibility.
The moment somebody talks money before or at the interview, it should raise a red flag. (So also with nonsense “digital arrest” scams). Where is the question of paying the company to get that job in their company? It defies basic logic. If it’s a recruitment agency offering a genuine job they should be told that their fee will be paid out of the first salary received (after paying a nominal registration fee if required). There is never the need to divulge bank details in any situation
Many young job seekers, especially from the Gen Z generation, are becoming victims of job scams. In their eagerness to find good opportunities, some trust fake recruiters, professional-looking websites, or convincing online interviews. As a result, they end up losing their parents’ hard-earned money while chasing a job that never existed.
These scams are becoming more difficult to identify because technology can make fake things look very real. What we see online is not always the truth.
A recent real-life experience reminded me that while technology is powerful, human judgment is even more important. Before trusting any job offer, it is always wise to verify the company, check the recruiter’s details, and confirm information through official sources. A little caution can save a lot of money, stress, and disappointment.
The biggest lesson is simple: in today’s digital world, “Seeing is Believing” is no longer enough. We must also question, verify, and think carefully before making decisions.
Technology can be smart, but common sense and careful verification will always be our best protection
A very relatable account of how easily hope and excitement can make us overlook the smallest details. For anyone chasing their next opportunity, this is a reminder that every journey comes with its own lessons, and sometimes the disappointments teach us to be more careful and prepared for what lies ahead. A very timely read!
Very timely cautionary matter or issues expressed by author.
I just shared my personal opinion as permanent solution to address these frauds through my below comments and to help our youths:
• It is very unfortunate that community strongholds such as the Kodava Samajas of Kodava Nad and many other local bodies,do not yet have dedicated wings to address societal concerns such as fraudulent recruitment agencies and career-related scams.
. A separate wing under community organisation could function as an easily accessible Career & Employment Advisory Help Desk, where students and job seekers can seek guidance through walk-in consultations or a phone helpline before parting with their money or personal documents.
• HR professionals and the wider Kodava professional community across the globe could support these advisory bodies by volunteering their expertise, verifying employment opportunities and creating a conducive support network, particularly for students from middle-class, BPL and rural families of Kodagu.
Such an initiative could serve as a torchlight for enthusiastic rural students, empowering them with the right information and awareness to identify fraudulent recruiters, avoid traps and make informed decisions about their education and careers.
All the points you make are valid. Providing “guidance” and “mentoring” for a small community like us is absolutely essential. There are many communities who provide this as a service. Others like the Buntara Sangha are more proactive in finding jobs and providing accommodation for working women. We must learn from them.
We often become so enthusiastic upon receiving an interview invitation for our dream job that we overlook the necessity of verifying the company details, particularly when we need to travel a considerable distance to attend the interview. If I was in Anand’s position, I might have also neglected to review the finer points of the invention dur to my excitement.
As a piece of advice to the younger generation, please do not be swayed solely by the allure of prominent corporate names. Conduct thorough research on the company where you are scheduled to interview. In today’s technology age, it’s feasible to access comprehensive information about any organisation. Securing the right job with the appropriate company regardless of its size or brand reputation,is crucial.
Interesting experience of the Author. This kind of experience is not uncommon. There are also recruitments agencies and opportunists exploiting gullible job seekers. Jobseekers also beware like buyers.
It is nice suggestion by CLN desk about counselling and training. Such helping nature is seen in malyali speaking community. This I witnessed while working in AG office, Bangalore. Around 200-300 new recruits join the office every year. Malyalis had a ritual here. As soon as new candidates arrive, Malayalee’s we’re identified, received, groomed till they are comfortable in the office. We were 20- 30 kodavas in the office and we maintained the similar rituals with new kodava recruits mainly hockey players and ex servicemen.
So true, I travelled with a supposed to be victim, back in 2014 to Delhi, finally saved him from the scam…
It only shows that things have got worse and more “clever”. Digital scams are the order of the day.
Becoming especially bad in the US. People are so desperate, they’ll throw caution out of the window.
Shocking but a very good article. The wise young person will learn from other people’s experiences.
This made for a very sad and disturbing read, but an important warning for every job seeker. I genuinely felt sorry for the author especially imagining the hope with which he set out for an interview believing that this could be the opportunity to move closer to fulfilling his dreams.
A job seeker is not merely travelling to an interview- he is travelling with hope, expectations and often the dreams of an entire family.
This article is sn important reminder to all of us to verify before we trust, however exciting an opportunity may appear.
At the same time. , i hope the author finds the strength to move beyond this bitter experience and that the setback does not make him give up on his dreams.
A powerful reminder that every opportunity carries a story of hope, effort, and sometimes disappointment. The hardest journeys teach us the most valuable lessons. This story beautifully captures hope, sacrifice, and the reality of chasing opportunities despite uncertainty.
This is a very relevant article. The incident described may look simple, but it reflects a much larger and increasingly sophisticated problem. The traditional scams have now evolved into countless digital variations, including fake job interviews, investment opportunities, digital arrests, impersonation and elaborate social engineering.
I have personally come close to such a trap and was fortunately able to step back in time. Many people may not be as lucky. What is particularly worrying is that retired people who have accumulated savings over a lifetime are increasingly becoming attractive targets for these criminals.
Perhaps we need more than just individual awareness. Cybercrime departments and local communities should actively collect and publicise such real-life experiences and scam patterns before more people fall victim. Every story shared could potentially save someone else.
The article is a timely reminder that in today’s world, hope and urgency are often the very tools scammers exploit. **Greedy always look for needy.**
A timely and important cautionary tale. Opportunity can make even sensible people suspend skepticism for a moment. Verify the employer, verify the recruiter, verify the address — before investing your money, documents and, most importantly, your hope