Malvika Sitlani faces crowdfunding scam allegation, netizens question Rs 40 lakh raised for mother's cancer

Influencer Malvika Sitlani faces backlash after Rs 40 lakh fundraiser. (Image: malvikasitlaniofficial/ Instagram)

Malvika Sitlani, a beauty influencer with a large social media following, is facing criticism over funds raised for her mother’s cancer treatment. The controversy arose shortly after she announced her mother’s death.

Who is Malvika Sitlani?

Sitlani began creating online content around 2016. Over the years, she built a strong presence, with more than 700,000 followers on Instagram and over 800,000 subscribers on YouTube. Her videos focus on everyday make-up, skincare routines, faith-based reflections and personal vlogs. She has also spoken openly about her divorce and journey as a single mother, which helped her build a loyal audience.

Why is Malvika Sitlani facing backlash?

Earlier this month, she shared on social media that her mother, Jenifer Sitlani, has passed after battling cancer. In her posts, she said life would never be the same and spoke about losing both her parents within a short period.

In January 2026, Sitlani had launched a fundraiser on the crowdfunding platform ImpactGuru to support her mother’s treatment. According to the campaign details, her mother was battling metastatic breast cancer for the third time. The cancer had reportedly spread to her bones and liver, and she required intensive treatment in Dubai. Nearly Rs 40 lakh was raised through the campaign.

On February 10, 2026, Sitlani announced that her mother had passed away. Her posts expressed grief and loss. However, days later, her Valentine’s Day Instagram stories drew attention. She shared glam selfies, moments from an outing with a friend and captions about missing a man and “single girl vibes”. Screenshots of these posts were shared widely on X and Reddit, leading to allegations of insensitivity and questions about the fundraiser.

A user on X shared a post which was widely shared. The user wrote, “Another crowdfunding scam. This is Malvika Sitlani, a successful social media influencer with 700k+ Instagram followers and 800k+ YouTube subscribers, known for living a luxury lifestyle in Dubai.”

The same post further read, “Despite being rich and earning heavily from social media, she started a fundraiser for her mother’s cancer treatment, and people donated over Rs 40 lakh. Four days ago, her mother passed away due to cancer, and she is already back to posting glam photos and Valentine’s posts about missing a man. Everyone grieves in their own way, and no one should judge personal grief. But it is hard to believe someone can be this normal just four days after losing a parent and already be thinking about Valentine’s dates.”

The user also questioned the handling of the funds, writing, “And what about the money she raised through crowdfunding? When people donate out of trust and emotion, it is natural to expect clarity and sensitivity in return.”

Another crowdfunding scam

>This is Malvika Sitlani, a successful social media influencer with 700k+ Instagram followers and 800k+ YouTube subscribers, known for living a luxury lifestyle in Dubai. >Despite being rich and earning heavily from social media, she started a… pic.twitter.com/N8Gipu1TXZ — 𝙎 (@Alreadysad__) February 14, 2026

The discussion soon spread to Reddit. A post on the subreddit r/InstaCelebsGossip questioned the timing of the fundraiser. The post read, “She created the fundraiser at a time when she was already aware that her mother’s condition was extremely critical and unlikely to improve. That’s why she was hesitant if she should spend her money or not. At the same time, there isn’t much clarity on how the funds were ultimately used. But yeah, she was prepared for what was coming.”

A user commented under the post, “For someone who has helped folks raise money on a fundraiser, let me tell you this, through Impact guru the money would've gone to the hospital and let's say the bill was 10lakh. The hospital would raise fake invoice of 42 lakhs, get the 40 in their account ( not the main account because tax issues ) and then return it to the beneficiary after a "cut/bribe", there's another case where the hospital would issue a written statement saying as part of procedure 1 the bill is 10 lakhs but the patient has to come in for subsequent procedures and it'll cost more than 40lakhs. So the remaining money would then be transferred into the beneficiary account itself, and in a case where the patient died, the fundraiser platform would close the fundraiser; that's it. No more collection + lots of condolences but every last penny would be sent to your account before so they'll ask you if you maybe want to just donate the money to someplace else or so. I'm 100% sure, she has more than 28lakhs in her bank account, and she's going to take a grief trip very soon.”

Got some on Malvika by u/avacado_dosa in InstaCelebsGossip

At the same time, several users defended Sitlani. One wrote, “This won't affect her, but it will affect a person who is really in need of money. Because people can get scammed once, not regularly. So a genuine person will be seen as a scammer.”

Another said, “She used the money for her mother’s hospitalisation in January. Why do you have to sit and judge people going through tough times? She is trying to grieve in her own way. And the last thing she would do is scam people. She’s a God-fearing person.”

A third added, “Malvika might be wrong for crowdfunding but you have no business in judging how she needs to grieve.”

One more user commented, “Might be an unpopular opinion: When we lose a loved one, we grief for 15 days and then go back to our job as that is our source of income. For influencers, making engaging content is the job. They cannot post sad content else their “brand value” diminishes.”

So far, Sitlani has not issued a detailed public statement addressing the scam allegations or providing a breakdown of how the funds were used.

Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content shared on social media. Moneycontrol has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them