I work at a Mexican grocery store and we carry a false saffron - Azafran - that is safflower blossoms rather than crocus stamens. You get the same colour in your dish that you would with true saffron, but a different flavour (and a much, much lower price). Maybe this is what you purchased?

Could be safflower?

I second the safflower. Sometimes they can look eerily similar, especially if the safflower is of good quality (long, unbroken petals, dark red in color, etc)

You have to be careful while shopping for saffron in India. We were told ,by the one of the sellers (very good one in Jaipur), that there are more and more people selling false saffron to tourists. They go as bad as selling dyed paper scraps (she actually showed us the fake one). She suggested to always check the quality before buying. The best method is to take little thread of saffron and put it into water. The real, good quality one will not dissolve, after all it's a flower stamen.

Penzey's has a good comparison of different saffron styles (w/photos - they're easier to see in the print catalog vs. online). I can't say whether you have safflower (as stated above), but it's a good guide.

Let's just say you get what you pay for... There is a sweetness in the aroma to real saffron, perhaps buy some in your country so you have something to compare it to when looking overseas.

I read way back to soak a strand in water for a few and blot it dry and look at it. Because so many false saffron manufacturers just take another kind of stamen and dip it in bright yellow dye. If it isn't that fiery orange red after soaking, its fake.