Kottayam: As the wedding catering fraud in Kottayam continues to make headlines, another 27-year-old catering business in the district is counting the cost of the fraud it had nothing to do with.

Udayam Catering and Event Management in Manjoor, run by Rajendran and his wife, Suni Rajendran, has already lost several orders, with bookings stretching up to several months cancelled after customers mistook it for the establishment involved in the fraud. “Twelve orders were cancelled at one go. Our reputation has been completely ruined for no fault of ours. I don’t know how we will move forward,” says Rajendran.

According to him, customers began cancelling bookings after confusing his establishment with the one run by Vishnu Mohan, who was arrested for taking money from customers without delivering food for wedding functions. The similarity in the names of the two establishments has hit Rajendran’s business hard, with even bookings made months in advance being cancelled.

“My wife, who is undergoing treatment in hospital, has to undergo dialysis three times a week. This has left the family mentally shattered. Our employees are also worried. People are cancelling orders without even being willing to hear us out,” Rajendran said.

Rajendran started the establishment in 1999, while the licence is registered in Suni’s name. The latest setback has pushed the family into serious financial strain, he said.