S'pore woman posts on LinkedIn about running into ex-CEO Piyush Gupta in Bali, real Piyush Gupta says it's not him

A Singapore woman posted on LinkedIn about her chance encounter with a man she ran into in Bali.

Her post indicated that she was sure she had met former DBS CEO Piyush Gupta.

"I glanced across the room and thought, that looks an awful lot like Piyush. Curious, I walked over — and sure enough, it was him," wrote LinkedIn user Janney Hujic in a May 19 post.

She even included a photo of herself with the man himself, apparently in full retirement mode in a floral-printed shirt.

"No entourage. No airs. Just quiet conviction," she said.

As it turned out, there was a reason for his lack of an entourage.

"Sorry to disillusion you. That isn't me!" the former DBS CEO replied in a comment, a day after being tagged in Hujic's post.

His reply got over 2,000 likes — more than the initial post itself.

Hujic took it in stride, replying that the man "had your charms right on and said all the right things".

Doppelganger?

The mix-up apparently happened when Hujic saw Gupta's lookalike in a Bali cafe.

They spoke for a few minutes, during which Hujic shared about her travel start-up.

"His eyes lit up. He spoke of the need for rest and renewal... Over his 40+ year career, he's seen how these experiences fuel women's personal and professional growth," Hujic recalled.

She was also struck by his "humility and presence", she said.

For comparison, this is the real Piyush Gupta:

Mistaken identity

People in the comments section seemed divided on the case of mistaken identity.

Some accused Hujic of creating the posts for traffic.

"They look nothing alike!" one user said.

But others sympathised with the mix-up, with one noting that "the similarity is impeccable".

After screenshots of the post gained traction on social media, many commented that this was "peak LinkedIn", which refers to the phenomenon where professionals incessantly use the platform to share learning points.

Mothership has reached out to Hujic for comment.

You can read the full post here:

Top image from Janney Hujic/LinkedIn and DBS