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Woman meets ‘Piyush Gupta’ in Bali, turns out it wasn’t him

A woman recently shared her “chance encounter” with Piyush Gupta in Bali, Indonesia, and tagged the former DBS Chief Executive Officer (CEO) on her LinkedIn post — only to find out it wasn’t him.

Janney Hujic, the founder of a Singapore tour company, posted a photo of herself and who she believed to be Piyush Gupta earlier this week.

The picture was taken in a cafe, which she said was “the last place” she expected to meet him.

Source: Janney Hujic on LinkedIn

She wrote: “I glanced across the room and thought, ‘That looks an awful lot like Piyush’. Curious, I walked over — and sure enough, it was him.”

However, Ms Hujic was especially struck by how the ex-bank CEO was “casual”, “composed”, and “entirely unassuming”.

“No entourage. No airs. Just quiet conviction,” she remarked.

Piyush Gupta lookalike plays along

Ms Hujic did not waste the opportunity to speak with the man, sharing with him her mission to “empower women through transformative travel”, which apparently made his eyes light up.

He spoke to Ms Hujic about “the need for rest and renewal”, adding that he’s seen how relaxing experiences “fuel women’s personal and professional growth” in his career of more than 40 years.

Ms Hujic then told him about her company’s upcoming all-women expedition in Mongolia “in support of the Goh Chok Tong Enable Fund”.

To which the man smiled and said: “What an incredible opportunity — for women of any age — to step outside the office and into something truly meaningful.”

Ms Hujic said her brief encounter with “Mr Gupta” made her realise that leaders not only inspire with words, but also lead by action.

Ex-DBS CEO says man in Bali isn’t him

Many felt happy for Ms Hujic after her unexpected encounter with “Mr Gupta”, expressing their awe in the comments section.

However, to everyone’s surprise, the real Mr Gupta later replied to the post, saying the man Ms Hujic met in Bali wasn’t him.

Source: Janney Hujic on LinkedIn

Ms Hujic shared she had met Mr Gupta in the past when she worked at DBS and added that the man truly looked like the company’s former CEO.

“Kudos to him. In his defense, he had your charms right on and he said all the right things,” she explained.

Source: Janney Hujic on LinkedIn

Following this revelation, the post quickly went viral and drew conflicting reactions across social media.

Some said the mix-up made them laugh and wondered if the man had never denied being Mr Gupta throughout the interaction.

Source: Janney Hujic on LinkedIn

However, others said they felt secondhand embarrassment, with several people accusing Ms Hujic of keeping the post up for engagement.

Source: Janney Hujic on LinkedIn

Also read: DBS CEO Piyush Gupta appointed Mandai Park Holdings chairman, says he’s committed to environmental causes

DBS CEO Piyush Gupta appointed Mandai Park Holdings chairman, says he’s committed to environmental causes

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