How do you catch the attention of important folks in a town flush with dollars? Flash some of your own. And with job done, put it all back in the pocket and walk on. Rakesh Kumar, co-founder of a little-known Silicon valley start-up did just that. And is now savouring new found celebrity.

Kumar, who is from Kaithal, Haryana, came to the US in 2006 on an H-1B visa, placed a bid of $580,000 (Rs 3.1 crore) in an online auction for a coffee with Apple CEO Tim Cook, according to a report in Hindustan Times. Kumar lost. The winning bid was $610,000. The auction was hosted by CharityBuzz.com, which offers meetings with celebs to raise money.

Coffee with Cook was for RFK Center for Justice and Human rights. The winning bidder and his/her partner would get to  spend 30 minutes to an hour with Cook.

Read the full report here