‘We can build AI but can’t eat real food’: Bengaluru entrepreneur calls out authorities

Bengaluru founder says fake food makes wealth meaningless, internet reacts (AI generated representational pic)

A Bengaluru-based entrepreneur has publicly criticised authorities over growing concerns around food safety, following repeated reports of adulterated staples such as milk, paneer, fruits and vegetables entering the market. In a strongly worded post on X, he questioned the value of financial success in a city where basic necessities like clean air and genuine food remain uncertain.

Luxury is meaningless: Dilip Kumar

Entrepreneur Dilip Kumar, who is the co-founder of multiple companies, argued that personal wealth offers little comfort when public systems fail to protect health. He said living in a ₹2 crore apartment or earning ₹50 lakh annually feels meaningless if people are forced to consume fake food and breathe polluted air despite paying a premium for quality living.

It’s a strange world where organic and farm fresh trend on Instagram, while actually fake milk, paneer, vegetables, fruits, and eggs and sold and consumed. First the air and water was unsafe and now food can’t be trusted. It’s a pathetic standard of living masked as developing…

— Dilip Kumar (@kmr_dilip) February 9, 2026

In his post, Kumar pointed to what he described as a deep contradiction in urban India, where “organic” and “farm fresh” trends dominate social media, while adulterated milk, paneer, vegetables, fruits and even eggs are allegedly being sold widely. He said unsafe air and water were already major concerns, and the erosion of trust in food quality only worsens the situation.

“You can afford luxury housing, drive an electric vehicle and even build cutting-edge AI tools,” he wrote, “but if you still can’t breathe clean air or eat genuine food, then something is fundamentally broken.” Kumar added that flashy packaging, influencer endorsements or temporary political debates do little to address what he called a systemic failure.

He went on to argue that economic milestones and technological achievements lose their significance if governments cannot ensure basic public health safeguards. According to him, metrics like GDP growth or AI leadership are hollow victories when citizens are left vulnerable to polluted air, unsafe water and adulterated food. “Human lives can’t be reduced to a trending topic,” he wrote, calling for urgent corrective action.

Kumar’s remarks struck a chord online, with many users echoing his frustration. One commenter shared that their family had started growing some of their own produce to reduce dependence on the market, acknowledging that even partial self-sufficiency felt like a small but meaningful step.

Others disagreed, pushing back against the argument. One user claimed that access to clean, lab-tested food is possible for those willing to pay a higher premium, arguing that the issue was more about choices than availability.