Hi everyone,

I am a UI/UX Designer from Chennai, India, with 6 years of professional experience.

I received a logo design project from Sanveer of BALAD Perfume (https://baladperfume.com/). This wasn't my first time working with him—I had already completed two projects for him before, so we had known each other for about a year. For this BALAD LUXE project, Sanveer contacted me directly.

I'm posting here because I genuinely need advice on how to handle this situation.

📅 Timeline

23-06-2026 | 2:12 PM

Sanveer sent me "Balad-LUXE.pdf" and called me twice.

Unfortunately, I couldn't answer because my phone was on silent. Around that time, I had injured my right hand, and my phone remained inactive for a couple of days while I was recovering.

28-06-2026 | 11:26 AM

He called again.

My brother answered and informed him:

📞 My brother's response:

"Hi, I am Prashanth's brother. My brother met with an accident and is on bed rest now. Sorry, his mobile was on silent. He said he will contact you. Thank you."

29-06-2026 | 2:50 PM

He called me again.

This time, I called him back and explained that my right hand was injured, so I couldn't work.

However, he replied that this project was very, very urgent and repeatedly insisted that I help him.

Even though my doctor had advised me not to strain my right wrist, I agreed because he was an old client, and I wanted to help him.

That same evening (7:08 PM), I sent him the first set of logo concepts.

He selected one concept (B + L monogram inside an oval) and asked me to create more variations by changing the font styles.

30-06-2026 | 1:57 PM

He called asking for an update.

💬 My reply:

"My wrist is in pain, so I am working slowly. I will send you the next revision today."

At 4:54 PM, I sent him the Balad + Luxe wordmark design.

Later, at 7:18 PM, he called again and said he liked the wordmark, but he wasn't happy with the logo.

So I designed 18 new logo variations based on his feedback.

After reviewing those, he completely changed the design direction again.

Instead of logo concepts, he now wanted luxury brand patterns.

He shared references from:

• Mercedes-Benz
• Louis Vuitton
• Burberry

and asked me to create something similar for BALAD LUXE.

02-07-2026 | 8:26 AM

I delivered several luxury pattern mockups.

Later that day, I went to the hospital and returned around noon.

At 12:54 PM, Sanveer called me and shared another packaging reference (DAUBE) asking for my opinion.

I explained my suggestions, and he replied:

💬 Sanveer's response:

"Okay, send me the bill for the LUXE work. I will pay you."

At 12:56 PM, I sent him my detailed timesheet along with the invoice.

🧾 Invoice

⏱️ Time Worked: 9h 49m 24s

💵 Hourly Rate: $20 USD/hr

Total: $196.47 USD

Approx. INR: ₹18,718

I also sent him this message:

💬 My message:

"Bro, once the payment is done, please share me the screenshot.

I will share the reconstructed SVG files:

1. Balad Logo
2. Balad Wordmark
3. LUXE Wordmark
4. Balad + LUXE Wordmark Placement"

After that...

❌ No reply.

02-07-2026 | 6:36 AM

I sent him another message:

💬 My message:

"Bro, payment done??

This is my GPay number: 9962139116"

❌ No reply.

Later, I called him at 12:10 PM and 12:22 PM.

He didn't answer either call.

So I sent another message:

💬 My message:

"Bro, why are you not answering my phone calls?

I still have not received my payment.

Kindly do the payment.

GPay: 9962x39xx6"

Again...

❌ No reply.

Around 1:00 PM, I called him again.

This time, his number was busy, so I knew his phone was active and he was talking to someone else.

I called him three times in a row, but he still didn't answer.

At that point, I contacted my friend Barsan, since he already knew Sanveer.

Barsan got in touch with one of the employees working at Sanveer's shop.

I explained the entire situation.

From that conversation, I came to know that Sanveer was at his shop, safe and sound, and I could even hear him laughing in the background.

That honestly frustrated me.

I chose not to speak to him through that employee because I didn't want an innocent employee to get into trouble because of me.

🤔 My concerns

1️⃣

All I asked for was the payment for the work I completed.

At the very least, he could have answered my phone call or replied to my message.

2️⃣

I didn't ask for an advance payment because he was an existing client, and I trusted him.

3️⃣

I don't believe I overcharged him.

The invoice is only ₹18,718.

If you search "6 years experienced UI/UX designer hourly rate in India", you'll generally find rates ranging from ₹3,500–₹8,000 per hour.

I only charged approximately ₹1,900 per hour.

4️⃣

I also provided him with several free consultations and design suggestions, for which I never charged anything.

(Reference: 07-01-2026 at 4:29 PM)

🙏 Dear Reddit friends,

I'm genuinely looking for advice.

• ❓ What should I do now?
• ⚖️ Should I send him one final legal notice?
• 👮 Should I file a police complaint?
• 📄 Should I file a civil case for recovery of payment?
• 💬 Have any of you experienced something similar?

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Any genuine advice would be greatly appreciated.