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Dongri To Dubai: Six Decades of The Mumbai Mafia
Dongri to Dubai is the first ever attempt to chronicle the history of the Mumbai mafia. It is the story of notorious gangsters like Haji Mastan, Karim Lala, Varadarajan Mudaliar, Chhota Rajan, Abu Salem, but above all, it is the story of a young man who went astray despite having a father in the police force. Dawood Ibrahim was initiated into crime as a pawn in the hands of the Mumbai police and went on to wipe out the competition and eventually became the Mumbai police’s own nemesis.The narrative encompasses several milestones in the history of crime in India, from the rise of the Pathans, formation of the Dawood gang, the first ever supari, mafia’s nefarious role in Bollywood, Dawood’s move to Karachi, and Pakistan’s subsequent alleged role in sheltering one of the most wanted persons in the world.This story is primarily about how a boy from Dongri became a don in Dubai, and captures his bravado, cunningness, focus, ambition, and lust for power in a gripping narrative. The meticulously researched book provides an in-depth and comprehensive account of the mafia’s games of supremacy and internecine warfare.
410 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 25, 2012
1468 people are currently reading
14236 people want to read
About the author
S. Hussain Zaidi
25 books571 followersS. Hussain Zaidi is a prominent Indian author, journalist, and screenwriter celebrated for his invaluable contributions to the world of crime reporting, investigative journalism, and storytelling. Born on February 28, 1962, in Mumbai, India, Zaidi has left an indelible mark on the literary and cinematic landscapes of India, particularly in the realm of crime and the Mumbai underworld.
S. Hussain Zaidi embarked on his career as a crime reporter, where he honed his skills in uncovering hidden truths and delving into the intricacies of organized crime in Mumbai. His early experiences as a journalist provided him with a deep understanding of the criminal world and its dynamics.
Over the years, Zaidi transitioned from journalism to writing and screenwriting, bringing his unparalleled insights and storytelling prowess to a wider audience. His unique ability to humanize the characters in his narratives, whether they are criminals or law enforcement officers, sets his work apart.
"Black Friday: The True Story of the Bombay Bomb Blasts" - Zaidi's book "Black Friday" is a compelling account of the 1993 Bombay bombings. It presents a factual and thorough examination of the events leading up to the blasts and their aftermath.
"Dongri to Dubai: Six Decades of the Mumbai Mafia" - This critically acclaimed book stands as one of Zaidi's most notable works. It meticulously traces the evolution of organized crime in Mumbai over six decades. The book offers a comprehensive and gripping account of the city's criminal history.
"Mafia Queens of Mumbai: Stories of Women from the Ganglands" - In this compelling book, Zaidi sheds light on the powerful and enigmatic women who played significant roles in Mumbai's underworld. He tells their stories with empathy and detail, providing a fresh perspective on the world of crime.
S. Hussain Zaidi's influential literary works have transcended the confines of the written word and made a powerful impact on the silver screen. Some noteworthy adaptations of his books include:
"Black Friday" (2007) - Directed by Anurag Kashyap.
"Shootout at Wadala" (2013) - Directed by Sanjay Gupta.
"Class of '83" (2020) - Directed by Atul Sabharwal.
"Gangubai Kathiawadi" (2022) - Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, among many others.
In addition to his contributions to the film industry, S. Hussain Zaidi has harnessed his creative prowess in the realm of film and web series production. His noteworthy productions encompass projects like "Bard of Blood" and "Scoop" on Netflix, as well as the recent addition "Bambai Meri Jaan," available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
S. Hussain Zaidi has played a pivotal role in nurturing emerging literary talents within the authorship realm. Notably, individuals such as Bilal Siddique, Neeraj Kumar (Commissioner of Delhi Police), Kashif Mashaikh, and many more have found their path to success as authors under his guidance. This mentoring initiative is facilitated through "Blue Salt Media," an imprint in collaboration with Penguin India.
S. Hussain Zaidi's work, both in literature and cinema, continues to captivate audiences with its gritty realism, engaging storytelling, and insights into the complex world of crime and law enforcement in India. His contributions have not only enriched the true crime genre but have also served as a source of inspiration for aspiring writers, journalists, and filmmakers.
S. Hussain Zaidi embarked on his career as a crime reporter, where he honed his skills in uncovering hidden truths and delving into the intricacies of organized crime in Mumbai. His early experiences as a journalist provided him with a deep understanding of the criminal world and its dynamics.
Over the years, Zaidi transitioned from journalism to writing and screenwriting, bringing his unparalleled insights and storytelling prowess to a wider audience. His unique ability to humanize the characters in his narratives, whether they are criminals or law enforcement officers, sets his work apart.
"Black Friday: The True Story of the Bombay Bomb Blasts" - Zaidi's book "Black Friday" is a compelling account of the 1993 Bombay bombings. It presents a factual and thorough examination of the events leading up to the blasts and their aftermath.
"Dongri to Dubai: Six Decades of the Mumbai Mafia" - This critically acclaimed book stands as one of Zaidi's most notable works. It meticulously traces the evolution of organized crime in Mumbai over six decades. The book offers a comprehensive and gripping account of the city's criminal history.
"Mafia Queens of Mumbai: Stories of Women from the Ganglands" - In this compelling book, Zaidi sheds light on the powerful and enigmatic women who played significant roles in Mumbai's underworld. He tells their stories with empathy and detail, providing a fresh perspective on the world of crime.
S. Hussain Zaidi's influential literary works have transcended the confines of the written word and made a powerful impact on the silver screen. Some noteworthy adaptations of his books include:
"Black Friday" (2007) - Directed by Anurag Kashyap.
"Shootout at Wadala" (2013) - Directed by Sanjay Gupta.
"Class of '83" (2020) - Directed by Atul Sabharwal.
"Gangubai Kathiawadi" (2022) - Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, among many others.
In addition to his contributions to the film industry, S. Hussain Zaidi has harnessed his creative prowess in the realm of film and web series production. His noteworthy productions encompass projects like "Bard of Blood" and "Scoop" on Netflix, as well as the recent addition "Bambai Meri Jaan," available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
S. Hussain Zaidi has played a pivotal role in nurturing emerging literary talents within the authorship realm. Notably, individuals such as Bilal Siddique, Neeraj Kumar (Commissioner of Delhi Police), Kashif Mashaikh, and many more have found their path to success as authors under his guidance. This mentoring initiative is facilitated through "Blue Salt Media," an imprint in collaboration with Penguin India.
S. Hussain Zaidi's work, both in literature and cinema, continues to captivate audiences with its gritty realism, engaging storytelling, and insights into the complex world of crime and law enforcement in India. His contributions have not only enriched the true crime genre but have also served as a source of inspiration for aspiring writers, journalists, and filmmakers.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 994 reviews
July 23, 2012
I have always been pretty eager to read about the Mumbai Underworld, and S Hussain Zaidi has somehow helped me alot in quenching my thirst about the mumabi mafia through his earlier books Black Friday and The Mafia Queens of Mumbai. I picked up 'Dongri to Dubai' with lots of hope,thinking that it is going to be a great sequel to the Mumbai Mafia trilogy,sadly, the I found the book below my expectation levels and here are the reasons for that:-
1. The book is repetitive at quite a number of instances. Same paragraphs are repeated more than once.It feels quite irritating if you have to read the same paragraph which has appeared two pages earlier.
2. Some of the anecdotes used in this book are already mentioned in 'The Mafia Queens of Mumbai'. Someone who has read that book wouuld very easily find this out.
3. Most importantly, I found that Mr. Zaidi has tried pretty hard to portray Dawood Ibrahim as a larger than life character. Glorification of crime can be disastrous in the long term and the gullible youth can find an inspiration to venture into the wrong path after reading such unnecessary portrayals of someone who is a dreaded criminal.
4. Mr. Zaidi has tried to portray Dawood as a "Muslim" don by dividng the mumbai mafia on communal lines. Reading the book, I felt that Mr. Zaidi is trying to convey that "Muslim" Mafia is far better organized, eqipped and efficient than the Hindu Mafia. For me, crime and criminals have no religion, so such divisions along communal lines are uncalled for.
I am eagerly awaiting the fourth book of Mr. Zaidi i.e "Headley and I" and I sinceerely hope that the book will be a better effort than "Dongri to Dubai".
Regards,
Siddahrth
1. The book is repetitive at quite a number of instances. Same paragraphs are repeated more than once.It feels quite irritating if you have to read the same paragraph which has appeared two pages earlier.
2. Some of the anecdotes used in this book are already mentioned in 'The Mafia Queens of Mumbai'. Someone who has read that book wouuld very easily find this out.
3. Most importantly, I found that Mr. Zaidi has tried pretty hard to portray Dawood Ibrahim as a larger than life character. Glorification of crime can be disastrous in the long term and the gullible youth can find an inspiration to venture into the wrong path after reading such unnecessary portrayals of someone who is a dreaded criminal.
4. Mr. Zaidi has tried to portray Dawood as a "Muslim" don by dividng the mumbai mafia on communal lines. Reading the book, I felt that Mr. Zaidi is trying to convey that "Muslim" Mafia is far better organized, eqipped and efficient than the Hindu Mafia. For me, crime and criminals have no religion, so such divisions along communal lines are uncalled for.
I am eagerly awaiting the fourth book of Mr. Zaidi i.e "Headley and I" and I sinceerely hope that the book will be a better effort than "Dongri to Dubai".
Regards,
Siddahrth
August 2, 2012
A book like this was long over due. It is a veritable encyclopedia on the Bombay underworld written by the best amongst the lot - Mr. S. Hussain Zaidi who has previously given us Black Friday and Mafia Queens of Mumbai. Along with Shantaram and Maximum City, this book attempts to define a bewildering megalopolis that defies any easy classification... Meticulously researched over a period of six years,it draws, for the first time, not only the careers of the most dreaded gangsters like Dawood and Karim Lala and Haji Mastan (and their contemporaries and predecessors), but also delves into their personal lives that range from their love affairs to their innermost flaws and fears. The book rises above regular reportage and attains a maturity that is rarely seen amongst others of the ilk.
September 21, 2013
This was my first read about mafia - and while I was deeply interested in how Mumbai gave the mafia a chance to flourish, I also noticed asking myself a crucial question more frequently during the latter half of my read.
What should a nonfiction on mafia ideally convey?
Should it be an “objective account” that boasts of not commenting on the ethics of mafiadom to present an “unbiased chronological account” of the phenomenon? Or should it be a critical venture where, by exposing the murky machinery of the underworld, the effects of criminal activities on society should also be commented upon, along with an enquiry into the aspects which drew people to crime?
Reflecting on the exciting, information-laden, action-packed narrative I have just read, I find myself rooting for the latter.
A crime nonfiction, especially one of this scale, ought not to be solely about chronology; rather, it should be a social inquiry into the nature of crime and criminals, along with the socio-economic and political machinations that allow crime to thrive.
My experience with this book has been a heady one – for one, I had only a vague idea about the six decades of mafia in Mumbai, mostly through popular consensus, some current affairs and a spate of unreliable Bollywood references on various forgotten gangsters. I took up this book to see if I could link these all into a coherent view of the history of mafia.
In this respect, the narrative succeeds – it deals with the beginnings of Mafia in Bombay right from the ‘50s, when India had just freshly got her freedom from the British. Some of the most commonly known and feared gangsters, such as Haji Mastan, Varadarajan, Dawood, Abu Salem, Chhota Rajan, Chhota Shakeel and Manya Surve – some of them have become legendary names, while some of them have had their three-hours of fame in celluloid. Most of them have been entirely forgotten.
The account is extremely interesting – it explores how economic policies and political scenarios unwittingly opened up avenues for gangs to flourish. E.g. the ban on liquor/contraband in the ‘50s allowed Mudaliar to tap the scope for producing hooch, the neo-liberation economic policy of the early ‘90s coupled with closing of many mills opened up the real-estate to Dawood Ibrahim.
Although it comprehensively covers all major gangsters, it is more Dawood-centric, and it mostly follows a chronological account of only that gang which Dawood was to first join and then take over later. Since the cover explicitly depicts only Dawood, it is to be expected that all roads lead to D Company.
For beginners who have no idea about the details of the six decades of mafia, it is a lovely book – chronicling the rise of mafia, their operations, the involvement of police at various stages, apart from the usual politician-lobbying. There are anecdotes of how certain words came into mafia lingo - cultural origins of Rampuri chaku (a long foldable knife with sharp edges on one side first used by the Rampuri gang), why a hit job is referred to as ‘supari’(betel nut) and a valorous man is referred to as ‘soorma’ (eyeliner).
It also depicts how changing political scenarios like the Emergency, the enforcement of certain laws like MISA and TADA and the establishment of Indian Spy Agency RAW affected the fortunes of the mafia.
The latter part of the book concentrates more on Dawood and his changing fortunes – and the fortunes of the people around him – Chhota Rajan, Chhota Shakeel, Abu Salem – as also the state of Bollywood when it got unwillingly embroiled with D Company.
A little more light is shed on how the Liberation policy of 1991 which liberalized the economy showered riches on the mafia, how communal riots, the Babri Mosque demolition resulted into the 10 serial bomb blasts in Mumbai in 1993.
5 stars for entertainment and information.
But 0 stars for everything else.
What I cringe at is the tone of the text. It is a glorifying account, a romantic portrayal of the underworld – much similar to Bollywood movies like “Once Upon a Time in Mumbai”. Don’t expect a “Satya” kind of serious, sane, and more importantly, just depiction.
Every single paragaraph reeks of that uninhibited admiration for gangsters. Maybe Zaidi is afraid of Dawood – because he fleetingly mentions every bold journalist being murdered by them. It is a sort of glamorized, smooth, glib, charming, honeyed romantic account. Instead of portraying the blood, filth and dirt that mafia really is, it is a sentimental account, which is a gross, inhuman injustice to the brave people who lost their lives to these ruffians.
Worse, the author is so keen on explaining to the readers that dear little Dawood had absolutely no hand in the blasts because he had only provided logistical support to the ISI and had only thought it would be used for the “pin-and-prick” terrorism in Kashmir, but was innocently unaware of what ISI was planning. Wow, try telling me a notorious don had no idea what he was providing the logistics support for!
Dawood and his cohorts are consistently depicted as “not really bad people.” He doesn’t miss a chance to evoke empathy for him and his cohorts. I feel neither sympathy for them, nor pity. I only find myself singeing in fury and helplessness. These people were criminals, not bloody victims.
I’ll stop here lest I start cussing. But suffice it to say, the 3 stars are a big generosity, given only for the chronological account that I didn’t know. I give a full ZERO star for the intentions of the book.
What should a nonfiction on mafia ideally convey?
Should it be an “objective account” that boasts of not commenting on the ethics of mafiadom to present an “unbiased chronological account” of the phenomenon? Or should it be a critical venture where, by exposing the murky machinery of the underworld, the effects of criminal activities on society should also be commented upon, along with an enquiry into the aspects which drew people to crime?
Reflecting on the exciting, information-laden, action-packed narrative I have just read, I find myself rooting for the latter.
A crime nonfiction, especially one of this scale, ought not to be solely about chronology; rather, it should be a social inquiry into the nature of crime and criminals, along with the socio-economic and political machinations that allow crime to thrive.
My experience with this book has been a heady one – for one, I had only a vague idea about the six decades of mafia in Mumbai, mostly through popular consensus, some current affairs and a spate of unreliable Bollywood references on various forgotten gangsters. I took up this book to see if I could link these all into a coherent view of the history of mafia.
In this respect, the narrative succeeds – it deals with the beginnings of Mafia in Bombay right from the ‘50s, when India had just freshly got her freedom from the British. Some of the most commonly known and feared gangsters, such as Haji Mastan, Varadarajan, Dawood, Abu Salem, Chhota Rajan, Chhota Shakeel and Manya Surve – some of them have become legendary names, while some of them have had their three-hours of fame in celluloid. Most of them have been entirely forgotten.
The account is extremely interesting – it explores how economic policies and political scenarios unwittingly opened up avenues for gangs to flourish. E.g. the ban on liquor/contraband in the ‘50s allowed Mudaliar to tap the scope for producing hooch, the neo-liberation economic policy of the early ‘90s coupled with closing of many mills opened up the real-estate to Dawood Ibrahim.
Although it comprehensively covers all major gangsters, it is more Dawood-centric, and it mostly follows a chronological account of only that gang which Dawood was to first join and then take over later. Since the cover explicitly depicts only Dawood, it is to be expected that all roads lead to D Company.
For beginners who have no idea about the details of the six decades of mafia, it is a lovely book – chronicling the rise of mafia, their operations, the involvement of police at various stages, apart from the usual politician-lobbying. There are anecdotes of how certain words came into mafia lingo - cultural origins of Rampuri chaku (a long foldable knife with sharp edges on one side first used by the Rampuri gang), why a hit job is referred to as ‘supari’(betel nut) and a valorous man is referred to as ‘soorma’ (eyeliner).
It also depicts how changing political scenarios like the Emergency, the enforcement of certain laws like MISA and TADA and the establishment of Indian Spy Agency RAW affected the fortunes of the mafia.
The latter part of the book concentrates more on Dawood and his changing fortunes – and the fortunes of the people around him – Chhota Rajan, Chhota Shakeel, Abu Salem – as also the state of Bollywood when it got unwillingly embroiled with D Company.
A little more light is shed on how the Liberation policy of 1991 which liberalized the economy showered riches on the mafia, how communal riots, the Babri Mosque demolition resulted into the 10 serial bomb blasts in Mumbai in 1993.
5 stars for entertainment and information.
But 0 stars for everything else.
What I cringe at is the tone of the text. It is a glorifying account, a romantic portrayal of the underworld – much similar to Bollywood movies like “Once Upon a Time in Mumbai”. Don’t expect a “Satya” kind of serious, sane, and more importantly, just depiction.
Every single paragaraph reeks of that uninhibited admiration for gangsters. Maybe Zaidi is afraid of Dawood – because he fleetingly mentions every bold journalist being murdered by them. It is a sort of glamorized, smooth, glib, charming, honeyed romantic account. Instead of portraying the blood, filth and dirt that mafia really is, it is a sentimental account, which is a gross, inhuman injustice to the brave people who lost their lives to these ruffians.
Worse, the author is so keen on explaining to the readers that dear little Dawood had absolutely no hand in the blasts because he had only provided logistical support to the ISI and had only thought it would be used for the “pin-and-prick” terrorism in Kashmir, but was innocently unaware of what ISI was planning. Wow, try telling me a notorious don had no idea what he was providing the logistics support for!
Dawood and his cohorts are consistently depicted as “not really bad people.” He doesn’t miss a chance to evoke empathy for him and his cohorts. I feel neither sympathy for them, nor pity. I only find myself singeing in fury and helplessness. These people were criminals, not bloody victims.
I’ll stop here lest I start cussing. But suffice it to say, the 3 stars are a big generosity, given only for the chronological account that I didn’t know. I give a full ZERO star for the intentions of the book.
November 8, 2017
"necessity is the mother of invention and father of crime"
an excellent book to learn about mumbai's underworld and the rise of dawood .The story begins with rise of smugglers like haji mastan, musclemen like karim lala,varadarajan mudaliar.Then it talks about dawood, his gradual rise from armed robberies in the 70's to smuggling,organised crimes in the 80's and radicalization during the 90's after babri masjid.
all along the way hussain guides us throughout bombay's underworld history.
it shows the nexus between mafia and bollywood,between mafia and politicians.mumbai police has performed very well to deal with mafia menace, but one is left guessing what more could our government done if it had acted swiftly after bombay blasts and extradited dawood.And shows the need for police reforms.
globalization, although it helped reduce poverty worldwide, has resulted in globalization of crime.This has been epitomized by dawood .He has managed to control mumbai from hundreds of kilometres.
an excellent book ,4.5/5
an excellent book to learn about mumbai's underworld and the rise of dawood .The story begins with rise of smugglers like haji mastan, musclemen like karim lala,varadarajan mudaliar.Then it talks about dawood, his gradual rise from armed robberies in the 70's to smuggling,organised crimes in the 80's and radicalization during the 90's after babri masjid.
all along the way hussain guides us throughout bombay's underworld history.
it shows the nexus between mafia and bollywood,between mafia and politicians.mumbai police has performed very well to deal with mafia menace, but one is left guessing what more could our government done if it had acted swiftly after bombay blasts and extradited dawood.And shows the need for police reforms.
globalization, although it helped reduce poverty worldwide, has resulted in globalization of crime.This has been epitomized by dawood .He has managed to control mumbai from hundreds of kilometres.
an excellent book ,4.5/5
September 17, 2023
5.0 ⭐
GENRE - NON FICTION / CRIME
A very well researched and written Book about the Bombay underworld, a city of the Maharashtra province of India now known as Mumbai,the book describes the birth of mafia in the early 1950s post independence from British rule untill the early 2000 when Bombay police takes charge post the serial blast of Bombay by the than Bombay don Dawood Ibrahim and his associates.
A must read for all those who love to read about crimes, gang wars and underworld.
This was the 4th book I choose to read way back in 2014 it not only kept me interested and glued to reading but also made me realize that the other genre's in books can be pretty exciting as well prior to this I just stuck to Romantic genre.
Thank you 😊
GENRE - NON FICTION / CRIME
A very well researched and written Book about the Bombay underworld, a city of the Maharashtra province of India now known as Mumbai,the book describes the birth of mafia in the early 1950s post independence from British rule untill the early 2000 when Bombay police takes charge post the serial blast of Bombay by the than Bombay don Dawood Ibrahim and his associates.
A must read for all those who love to read about crimes, gang wars and underworld.
This was the 4th book I choose to read way back in 2014 it not only kept me interested and glued to reading but also made me realize that the other genre's in books can be pretty exciting as well prior to this I just stuck to Romantic genre.
Thank you 😊
August 5, 2012
Dongri To Dubai is not just a book. It’s a journey of few people who changed the history of Mumbai over the period of six decades after the independence.
The book simply tells you the stories of local mafias and how they operated their networks with the help of some police officials, politicians, celebs and influenced personalities. The author has narrated very interesting stories of almost all the ganglords who indirectly ruled the economic center of India.
As far as storyline is concerned, it is divided into two parts so that readers can easily understand the difference between two eras. Zaidi’s narrating style and realistic approach are probably the best parts of this book. He had the scope to glamorize some of the events, for example the encounters of gangsters, but that doesn’t happen here. And, I guess that’s where the author earns his points.
In the end, you just have to admire the efforts of author for doing so much extensive research on this topic, which is obviously not a cup of tea of any other journalist or storyteller. It is fast paced and builds up an engaging read. Dongri To Dubai is recommended if you love the gangster bang-bangs, and feed your eyes mostly on Mafia diet.
The book simply tells you the stories of local mafias and how they operated their networks with the help of some police officials, politicians, celebs and influenced personalities. The author has narrated very interesting stories of almost all the ganglords who indirectly ruled the economic center of India.
As far as storyline is concerned, it is divided into two parts so that readers can easily understand the difference between two eras. Zaidi’s narrating style and realistic approach are probably the best parts of this book. He had the scope to glamorize some of the events, for example the encounters of gangsters, but that doesn’t happen here. And, I guess that’s where the author earns his points.
In the end, you just have to admire the efforts of author for doing so much extensive research on this topic, which is obviously not a cup of tea of any other journalist or storyteller. It is fast paced and builds up an engaging read. Dongri To Dubai is recommended if you love the gangster bang-bangs, and feed your eyes mostly on Mafia diet.
January 28, 2021
S. Hussain Zaidi's description style is repetitive, and many chapters were incomplete. The book also has some spelling errors. But this is the kind of book I read for the first time, and besides its mistakes and the author's judgemental tone at some points, I feel like this novel provides the details that you're not going to find online, especially at one place. This book is an eye-opener, and if you're interested in reading the Mumbai mafia's history, this book will give you a good start. I definitely recommend this fast-paced story of a boy who hailed from Dongri and reached Dubai.
Read the detailed review here -https://www.bookscharming.com/2021/01...
Read the detailed review here -https://www.bookscharming.com/2021/01...
November 20, 2013
Power n.: Ability to cause or prevent an action, make things happen; the discretion to act or not act. Opposite of disability.
A Society is made up of people from various cultures, creeds, colors and walks of life. Within societies are poor, middle class, and very prosperous individuals and families. Society has its own government, rules to abide by, laws to follow, courts and other controlling factors to make people who live therein, safe. People have careers, jobs, schools, commercial and residential areas that facilitate this whole idea of society. Mumbai then Bombay is one such cosmopolitan society which happily invites all "types" of people and offers every one of them who had conviction, to make fortune for them self. City of dreams.
But, there are certain individuals or group of individuals who stayed above all of this, meaning rules ungoverned, laws broken, fear instilled and chaos created which is, literally dictating this very society to kneel on all fours before them. And how did they manage to do it? They acquired POWER. People who were poor and vexed with their living, who were constantly ill-treated by few elements of society, who were allured & drawn to higher but negative elements and got carried away with the miracles it did, who were aggressive, strong-headed, and grew over-confident to let it go, who wanted to take advantage of the loopholes in the system, who do things just for the sake of doing them, or people who just simply needed to run a business and have to do anything to stay top of it. Which may ever be the reason for their entry into this one way game, these men started, rose and finally, they doomed. These people are every famous don we have heard in newspapers or in news like Haji Mastan, Karim Lala, Chota Shakeel, Chota Rajan, Abu Salem, Tiger Memnon just to name a few. These people showed this system that Power is not given it’s taken. And this is the book which profoundly discusses about these men who controlled, manipulated, influenced, exploited or even to a certain extent balanced, the very word and the world of Power.
Book starts wonderfully with minor incidents like pick pocketing/small time smuggling. Soon information just rolls page after page shifting from one place to other, from one influential person to another in Mumbai shaping the 60 years of Mafia. Lot of incidents, lot of journalists, crime reports, many more police, shootouts, endless lawbreakers making name for themselves, ruthless mushrooming gangsters, mobs, their companies, unheard stories from a petty pick pocketing incident to ’93 Mumbai blasts, from Mumbai docks to narrow streets of Karachi, it’s all there in those 387 pages that you have to know everything about Mafia; elaborated & thoroughly researched.
But through out the book, there is this one person rather a question who/which constantly intrigued me; it is the powerful name Dawood Ibrahim. And how I wished author include Dawood’s latest photograph when he managed to give a picture perfect description of his current appearance and whereabouts. People came, people ruled, people died, the end. But “How did Dawood and he alone, manage to raise him to be an immortal?” Is it because of his character or his intelligence or his attitude or most importantly his foresight? I don't know but clearly which he alone possessed and his adversaries lacked. But what makes uncomfortable and unsettling at times is that this charisma of Dawood acting as visa to author to try portraying him in very sympathetic/sentimental light, trying to justify every demonic act Dawood committed. Yes, May be he is the kingpin of the whole game but I remind you he is on the other side of the law.
Apart from this, book has its own inadequacies, especially towards the ending. It gets repetitive about Dawood’s actions & whereabouts and boils down to mere paper cuttings/articles collected here and there. And there are places it gets too dramatic where Author desperately tries to prove that he managed to meet childhood associates of Dawood and churn exclusive info which he called "scenes" in acknowledgements section like his movements, talking style, smoking habits etc., from them. But on a whole this book serves as a magisterial account on Indian mafia’s roots, its players, and the kingpin. A complete picture.
This is the best book not because it is the best book, but because we don’t have a better book than this on Indian Mafia. Mafia/Underworld has always been as glamorous as Bollywood and remains a fascination to me. If you have same thoughts like I do, pick this book.
A Society is made up of people from various cultures, creeds, colors and walks of life. Within societies are poor, middle class, and very prosperous individuals and families. Society has its own government, rules to abide by, laws to follow, courts and other controlling factors to make people who live therein, safe. People have careers, jobs, schools, commercial and residential areas that facilitate this whole idea of society. Mumbai then Bombay is one such cosmopolitan society which happily invites all "types" of people and offers every one of them who had conviction, to make fortune for them self. City of dreams.
But, there are certain individuals or group of individuals who stayed above all of this, meaning rules ungoverned, laws broken, fear instilled and chaos created which is, literally dictating this very society to kneel on all fours before them. And how did they manage to do it? They acquired POWER. People who were poor and vexed with their living, who were constantly ill-treated by few elements of society, who were allured & drawn to higher but negative elements and got carried away with the miracles it did, who were aggressive, strong-headed, and grew over-confident to let it go, who wanted to take advantage of the loopholes in the system, who do things just for the sake of doing them, or people who just simply needed to run a business and have to do anything to stay top of it. Which may ever be the reason for their entry into this one way game, these men started, rose and finally, they doomed. These people are every famous don we have heard in newspapers or in news like Haji Mastan, Karim Lala, Chota Shakeel, Chota Rajan, Abu Salem, Tiger Memnon just to name a few. These people showed this system that Power is not given it’s taken. And this is the book which profoundly discusses about these men who controlled, manipulated, influenced, exploited or even to a certain extent balanced, the very word and the world of Power.
Book starts wonderfully with minor incidents like pick pocketing/small time smuggling. Soon information just rolls page after page shifting from one place to other, from one influential person to another in Mumbai shaping the 60 years of Mafia. Lot of incidents, lot of journalists, crime reports, many more police, shootouts, endless lawbreakers making name for themselves, ruthless mushrooming gangsters, mobs, their companies, unheard stories from a petty pick pocketing incident to ’93 Mumbai blasts, from Mumbai docks to narrow streets of Karachi, it’s all there in those 387 pages that you have to know everything about Mafia; elaborated & thoroughly researched.
But through out the book, there is this one person rather a question who/which constantly intrigued me; it is the powerful name Dawood Ibrahim. And how I wished author include Dawood’s latest photograph when he managed to give a picture perfect description of his current appearance and whereabouts. People came, people ruled, people died, the end. But “How did Dawood and he alone, manage to raise him to be an immortal?” Is it because of his character or his intelligence or his attitude or most importantly his foresight? I don't know but clearly which he alone possessed and his adversaries lacked. But what makes uncomfortable and unsettling at times is that this charisma of Dawood acting as visa to author to try portraying him in very sympathetic/sentimental light, trying to justify every demonic act Dawood committed. Yes, May be he is the kingpin of the whole game but I remind you he is on the other side of the law.
Apart from this, book has its own inadequacies, especially towards the ending. It gets repetitive about Dawood’s actions & whereabouts and boils down to mere paper cuttings/articles collected here and there. And there are places it gets too dramatic where Author desperately tries to prove that he managed to meet childhood associates of Dawood and churn exclusive info which he called "scenes" in acknowledgements section like his movements, talking style, smoking habits etc., from them. But on a whole this book serves as a magisterial account on Indian mafia’s roots, its players, and the kingpin. A complete picture.
This is the best book not because it is the best book, but because we don’t have a better book than this on Indian Mafia. Mafia/Underworld has always been as glamorous as Bollywood and remains a fascination to me. If you have same thoughts like I do, pick this book.
March 21, 2016
Should a Non-fiction book about Mafia be a factual, textbook-ish, non-judgmental piece of writing or should it have a moral lesson that paints the gory, bloody side of the criminal life & highlights the ill effects, the illegality and the moral turpitude of the mobsters ?
In my opinion, the second option is better - but there is absolutely nothing wrong in going with the first.
What a Non-fiction book about Mafia should Not do is glorification of the criminals, the romanticization of the power that life of crime brings and to Not cater to the morbid fascination of violence, gang-war, police shootings etc.
And doing exactly that, I believe, is inexcusable!
It is because of this, in my opinion, that Dongri to Dubai by S. Hussain Zaidi fails miserably.
It is a dizzyingly fast paced thriller-ride that chronicles the Mumbai mafia starting right from 1948 - immediately after the Indian Independence - upto 2011-2012. It covers the criminal life of about 15 to 20 infamous Mumbai mafia dons - starting from Haji Mastan, Karim Lala, Varadrajan Mudaliar to Bada Rajan, Chotta Rajan, Chotta Shakeel, Abu Salem, Manya Surve, Arun Gawli, Maya Dolas and of course the big D - Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar.
About 75% of the book is devoted to Dawood. His rise from a poor family with 11 siblings and a respectable cop father to a street thug - then to a Police pawn - and finally to the numero uno of Mumbai underworld. Dawood's gang wars with the Pathan gang in the 80s, the Arun Gawli & Rama Naik gang in the 90s & then after his fallout with Chotta Rajan, the subsequent feud with him.
It is a tale of violence, backstabbing, racketeering, corruption, drug syndicates, police shootouts, police encounters, corrupt politicians, Bollywood celebrities embroiled in the crime circle & a jaw-dropping insane amount of money that finances & fuels this all!
On the purely informational & journalistic front, the book deserves straight 5/5 stars.
How the changing political and economic landscape of the country (like the liquor prohibition, the emergency, the lifting of trade restrictions by Prime Minister PV Rao) shaped the Mumbai crime scene, how & why young people from poorer neighborhoods like Dongri would prefer taking a life threatening risk for 10,000 Rupees is explained pretty well.
You feel livid after learning about the rampant corruption in Maharashtra politicians, in country-wide politicians in fact, the many opportunities to nab Dawood gone wasted.
One of the most infuriating story in the book is that during a gang-war related shootout by Dawood's men in Mumbai's JJ Hospital, they literally used a politician's "laal-batti" ambassador to escape! The name of the politician is an open secret - but still the complex nexus of corruption & money has swept everything under the rug!
However, even an iota of glorification of crime, even a subtle hint, in a purely non-fictional book is not good. Dongri to Dubai actually goes one step further. There is a sizable portion of the book devoted to supposedly convincing the reader how Dawood had no knowledge of 1993 Mumbai blasts & how he only provided logistical support. Seriously ? Dawood Ibrahim, a person who was on Forbes's most powerful people in the World list, a list that had Obama, Dalai Lama & Steve Jobs, had no idea why he was providing logistical support to land hundreds of kgs of explosives on Konkan coast ? No sane person would buy this reasoning.
The book mentions in gory details all the gang-war related shootouts - but the innocent people who lost their lives in the process deserve no more than a mere mention. Why should I, the reader, be expected to feel sorry for the gangsters who had to flee their homes & whatever country they were currently residing in, when their rival gangsters finally caught up with their hideouts ?
These gangsters have orchestrated such a great deal of pain & suffering on Mumbaikars, repeatedly trapping naive youth from poorer neighborhoods to take life threatening risks and after mentioning all of this in a passing, the author wastes no time in saying how genius this plan of "recruiting" new gang members was. Yes - it was a genius plan - but an 'evil, deserves-to-be-punished-by-law-evil genius' & you can't jut call it "genius" and stop there, you have to point out how it destroyed innocent lives !
Anyway, I am giving the book three stars. Thumbs up for collating 60 years' worth of history of mafia, police, shady Bollywood & corrupt politicians. But a big thumbs down for the wrong overall tone of the book.
In my opinion, the second option is better - but there is absolutely nothing wrong in going with the first.
What a Non-fiction book about Mafia should Not do is glorification of the criminals, the romanticization of the power that life of crime brings and to Not cater to the morbid fascination of violence, gang-war, police shootings etc.
And doing exactly that, I believe, is inexcusable!
It is because of this, in my opinion, that Dongri to Dubai by S. Hussain Zaidi fails miserably.
It is a dizzyingly fast paced thriller-ride that chronicles the Mumbai mafia starting right from 1948 - immediately after the Indian Independence - upto 2011-2012. It covers the criminal life of about 15 to 20 infamous Mumbai mafia dons - starting from Haji Mastan, Karim Lala, Varadrajan Mudaliar to Bada Rajan, Chotta Rajan, Chotta Shakeel, Abu Salem, Manya Surve, Arun Gawli, Maya Dolas and of course the big D - Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar.
About 75% of the book is devoted to Dawood. His rise from a poor family with 11 siblings and a respectable cop father to a street thug - then to a Police pawn - and finally to the numero uno of Mumbai underworld. Dawood's gang wars with the Pathan gang in the 80s, the Arun Gawli & Rama Naik gang in the 90s & then after his fallout with Chotta Rajan, the subsequent feud with him.
It is a tale of violence, backstabbing, racketeering, corruption, drug syndicates, police shootouts, police encounters, corrupt politicians, Bollywood celebrities embroiled in the crime circle & a jaw-dropping insane amount of money that finances & fuels this all!
On the purely informational & journalistic front, the book deserves straight 5/5 stars.
How the changing political and economic landscape of the country (like the liquor prohibition, the emergency, the lifting of trade restrictions by Prime Minister PV Rao) shaped the Mumbai crime scene, how & why young people from poorer neighborhoods like Dongri would prefer taking a life threatening risk for 10,000 Rupees is explained pretty well.
You feel livid after learning about the rampant corruption in Maharashtra politicians, in country-wide politicians in fact, the many opportunities to nab Dawood gone wasted.
One of the most infuriating story in the book is that during a gang-war related shootout by Dawood's men in Mumbai's JJ Hospital, they literally used a politician's "laal-batti" ambassador to escape! The name of the politician is an open secret - but still the complex nexus of corruption & money has swept everything under the rug!
However, even an iota of glorification of crime, even a subtle hint, in a purely non-fictional book is not good. Dongri to Dubai actually goes one step further. There is a sizable portion of the book devoted to supposedly convincing the reader how Dawood had no knowledge of 1993 Mumbai blasts & how he only provided logistical support. Seriously ? Dawood Ibrahim, a person who was on Forbes's most powerful people in the World list, a list that had Obama, Dalai Lama & Steve Jobs, had no idea why he was providing logistical support to land hundreds of kgs of explosives on Konkan coast ? No sane person would buy this reasoning.
The book mentions in gory details all the gang-war related shootouts - but the innocent people who lost their lives in the process deserve no more than a mere mention. Why should I, the reader, be expected to feel sorry for the gangsters who had to flee their homes & whatever country they were currently residing in, when their rival gangsters finally caught up with their hideouts ?
These gangsters have orchestrated such a great deal of pain & suffering on Mumbaikars, repeatedly trapping naive youth from poorer neighborhoods to take life threatening risks and after mentioning all of this in a passing, the author wastes no time in saying how genius this plan of "recruiting" new gang members was. Yes - it was a genius plan - but an 'evil, deserves-to-be-punished-by-law-evil genius' & you can't jut call it "genius" and stop there, you have to point out how it destroyed innocent lives !
Anyway, I am giving the book three stars. Thumbs up for collating 60 years' worth of history of mafia, police, shady Bollywood & corrupt politicians. But a big thumbs down for the wrong overall tone of the book.
October 10, 2013
There is a morbid fascination we associate with the darker shades of the society who are referred to as the 'underworld'. Seeing things from such an angle has also helped me understand the immense popularity movies like The Godfather trilogy, Scarface and Goodfellas have enjoyed. While most people cannot or do not want to grow rich in this fashion, they relish watching from the sidelines as a small section of their society does things by their own rules. Like any other nation of the world, India too has spawned its own version of the mafia. While the other states and locations have been the spokes, Mumbai has always been the hub. Needless to say, the world's most notorious gangster : Dawood Ibrahim has been Mumbai's contribution. This book is a chronicle of how mafia grew and evolved into a corporate behemoth that at one point was a parallel governing system in itself.
The storyline spans over 60 years and starts with the smaller knife-wielding pickpockets of yore and slowly paving the way for the big boys. Smuggling - whether it be gold,narcotics or imported goods was the golden corridor that made the fortunes of many a don in India. Certain names which are household property in terms of current affairs are all given flesh and blood caricatures in the book. These include big guns like Haji Mastan, Karim Lala and Varadarajan Muthaliar. From these old stalwarts, the story moves to the blue eyed wonder boy named Dawood who gave the mafia a fresh new coat of paint. From gang and turf wars that left a trail of corpses behind, Dawood built a business conglomerate that would rival even the most advanced multinationals. With affiliations,mergers and acquisitions the gang of erstwhile thugs grew into what was known as the D-company. Along the way, Dawood left India for safer haven in Dubai. The game shifts gears here for with intervention from intelligence agencies abroad the gang moves from strictly business deals to trying their hands in logistic support for terrorism. The results of this have been two of the most devastating terror attacks that India has witnessed. The boy from Dongri who built a sprawling criminal empire had transfomed to something else entirely. This is what the book encompasses. It offers a bird's eye view of the counter culture that has deeply affected the moral fabric of India.
For all the interesting subject material in the book, I did not find the author to be totally unbiased. There was of course the starry eyed wonderment reserved for Dawood and this sometimes made the storyline a bit biased. Also, it is only towards the end of the book that any real importance is given to the policing system that finally brought the mafia to its knees. Until the final few chapters, they are pretty much sidelined. The pace of the book however makes up for all this and if I were to tell you that the content of this book has already given rise to two movies, you would get the picture.
The impact mafia has on popular culture is rather immense. For instance, a movie named 'Nayagan' which was loosely inspired by the story of Varadarajan Muthaliar aka Vardha bhai has been hailed a masterpiece the World across. It is one of the two movies from India chosen by Time as the World's best with the other being 'Pather Panchali'! A quick read and an above average one at that.
The storyline spans over 60 years and starts with the smaller knife-wielding pickpockets of yore and slowly paving the way for the big boys. Smuggling - whether it be gold,narcotics or imported goods was the golden corridor that made the fortunes of many a don in India. Certain names which are household property in terms of current affairs are all given flesh and blood caricatures in the book. These include big guns like Haji Mastan, Karim Lala and Varadarajan Muthaliar. From these old stalwarts, the story moves to the blue eyed wonder boy named Dawood who gave the mafia a fresh new coat of paint. From gang and turf wars that left a trail of corpses behind, Dawood built a business conglomerate that would rival even the most advanced multinationals. With affiliations,mergers and acquisitions the gang of erstwhile thugs grew into what was known as the D-company. Along the way, Dawood left India for safer haven in Dubai. The game shifts gears here for with intervention from intelligence agencies abroad the gang moves from strictly business deals to trying their hands in logistic support for terrorism. The results of this have been two of the most devastating terror attacks that India has witnessed. The boy from Dongri who built a sprawling criminal empire had transfomed to something else entirely. This is what the book encompasses. It offers a bird's eye view of the counter culture that has deeply affected the moral fabric of India.
For all the interesting subject material in the book, I did not find the author to be totally unbiased. There was of course the starry eyed wonderment reserved for Dawood and this sometimes made the storyline a bit biased. Also, it is only towards the end of the book that any real importance is given to the policing system that finally brought the mafia to its knees. Until the final few chapters, they are pretty much sidelined. The pace of the book however makes up for all this and if I were to tell you that the content of this book has already given rise to two movies, you would get the picture.
The impact mafia has on popular culture is rather immense. For instance, a movie named 'Nayagan' which was loosely inspired by the story of Varadarajan Muthaliar aka Vardha bhai has been hailed a masterpiece the World across. It is one of the two movies from India chosen by Time as the World's best with the other being 'Pather Panchali'! A quick read and an above average one at that.
June 30, 2015
গডফাদার পড়ার পর মাফিয়া রিলেটেড বই আমাকে চুম্বকের মত আকর্ষণ করতে থাকে । মাফিয়াদের নিজস্ব আলাদা পৃথিবী ,তাদের রক্তপাত , খুন , বিশ্বাসঘাতকতা, মাফিয়া ডনদের উথান পতন এই সব বিষয় গুলো নিয়ে বই পড়ার আগ্রহ দ্বিগুণ হয়ে গেল । তাই ঝটপট খুঁজে পেতে মারিয়ো পুজোর মাফিয়া রিলেটেড সব বই গোগ্রাসে গিলতে লাগলাম । যখন দেখি তার মাফিয়া রিলেটেড বই সব শেষ তখন খোঁজা শুরু করলাম এই রকম আর কোন বই আছে কিনা । কিন্তু কিছুই খুঁজে না পেয়ে ওমের্তা, দা সিসিলিয়ান এই সব বইই বার বার পড়তে লাগলাম । মুম্বাই আন্ডারওয়ার্ল্ড সম্পর্কে জানার ইচ্ছে অনেক আগে থেকেই ছিল যখন বলিউডের বিভিন্ন গ্যাংস্টার মুভি দেখতাম তখন থেকেই । কিন্তু এই বিষয়ে কোন বই খুঁজে এতদিন পাই নি । গত কিছুদিন আগেই গ্রুপেই একজনের পোস্ট থেকে জানতে পারি এই বইটির কথা । এটি কোন ফিকশনাল বই নয় । পুরোটাই নন ফিকশন বই । বইটিতে মুম্বাই আন্ডারওয়ার্ল্ডের একদম শুরু থেকে বর্তমান অবস্থা পর্যন্ত আলোচনা করা হয়েছে । কিভাবে গঠিত হল মুম্বাই আন্ডারওয়ার্ল্ড । আন্ডারওয়ার্ল্ড ডন , তাদের জীবন , এক দলের সাথে আর এক দলের রক্তপাত । বইটিতে ধারাবাহিকভাবে বর্ণনা করা হয়েছে প্রতিটি ডনের কার্যকলাপ । ���ই বর্ণনা এসে শেষ হয়েছে আন্ডারওয়ার্ল্ডের ডনদের ডন দাউদ ইব্রাহিমের নাম পর্যন্ত এসে । বইটিতে যদিও প্রতিটি ঘটনা বর্ণনা আকারে দেওয়া আছে তবুও আমার মনে হয় পাঠকদের পড়তে একটুও খারাপ বা অসুবিধা লাগবে না । যদি কারো মুম্বাই আন্ডারওয়ার্ল্ড বা মাফিয়াসো সম্পর্কে জানার খুব ইচ্ছে থাকে তাহলে এই বইয়ের কোন বিকল্প নেই । তাদের জন্য অবশ্য পাঠ্য একটি বই ।
প্লট – ১৯৪৭ , সদ্য স্বাধীন হওয়া একটি দেশ ভারত । তার প্রান কেন্দ্র হচ্ছে মুম্বাই । ভারতের নানান প্রদেশ থেকে দলে দলে মানুষ আসতে লাগলো ভাগ্যের সন্ধানে এই মুম্বাই শহরে । কিন্তু এত লোকের ভাগ্য কি এমনিতেই ফিরবে । ভাগ্যদেবী কতজনের দিকে হাত বাড়াবেন । তাই নিজেরাই নিজেদের হাতে তুলে নিতে লাগল ভাগ্য ফেরানর দায়িত্ব । কিন্তু সোজা পথে কি ভাগ্য ফেরে ? তাই ধরতে হয় বাকা পথ । শুরু হয় চোরাচালনি, মাদক, স্মাগলিং , প্রস্টিটিউশন এর নিত্য নতুন প্রসার । আর তা করতে গিয়েই শুরু হয় এলাকার ভিত্তিক রাজত্ব । তৈরি হয় এক একজন মাফিয়া ডন । আর এইসব শুরু হয় একটি জায়গা থেকে “ ডংরি ” । মুম্বাই মাফিয়াসোর আঁতুড় ঘর । মুম্বাইয়ের যত বড় বড় সব ডনের জন্ম দিয়েছে এই ডংরি । খুন হিংসা , লোভ সব যেন এসে মিশে যায় এই ডংরিতে ।
বইটিতে আছে হাজি মাস্তান মুম্বাইয়ের ডকের গোল্ড স্মাগলিং ডন , আছে করিম লালা মুম্বাইয়ের মাদক দ্রবের একচ্ছত্র অধিপতি , আছে বাসু দাদা মাসলম্যান পাঠান ডন । আছে সৎ পুলিশ হেড কনস্টেবল ইব্রাহিম কস্কর । যাকে কেউ টাকা দিয়ে কিনতে পারে না । মুম্বাই মাফিয়া পাড়াতেও যাকে সম্মান করে ভাই বলা হয় তার সততার জন্য ।
আছে যাকে নিয়ে এই বই সেই ডনদের ডন দাউদ ইব্রাহিম । কিভাবে একটি ছোট পরিসর থেকে হয়ে উঠলেন ভারতের মোস্ট ওয়ান্টেড ম্যান । কিভাবে হয়ে উঠলেন ডনদের ডনে ।
আমার রেটিং – ৫/৫
এমন এঞ্জয়েবল বই পড়ি নাই অনেকদিন । একবারে টানটান থ্রিলার উপন্যাসের চেয়েও কম নয় এই বইটি । বরং থ্রিলার উপন্যাস কেও হার মানাবে এই বইটি। বইটি পাঠককে নিয়ে যাবে মাফিয়াদের রঙিন দুনিয়ায় যেখানে খুন, বিশ্বাসঘাতকতা নিত্য দিনের ব্যাপক। যেখানে আজকে যে রাজা কালকে সে রাস্তার লাশ। আর রাস্তার গুন্ডা হয় মুম্বাইয়ের ত্রাস।
ব্রি দ্র - বইটির কিছু অংশ থেকে " শুট আউট অ্যাট ওয়াডালা " মুভি হয়েছে । আমার মনে হয়েছে বইটিতে যা বর্ণনা করা হয়েছে তার যথার্থ ব্যাবহার মুভিতে করতে পারেনি । সম্পূর্ণ বইটি যদি যথাযতভাবে ব্যাবহার করে মুভি বানান যায় তবে নিঃসন্দেহে আরেকটি " গ্যাংস অফ ওয়াসিপুর" পাওয়া যাবে । "শুট আউট অ্যাট ওয়াডালা " মুভি হয়েছে বইটির মাত্র একটি চ্যাপ্টার থেকে। সম্পূর্ণ বই থেকে এই রকম বিশ ত্রিশটা মুভি করা যাবে।
May 6, 2013
A book on the Mumbai Mafia was long overdue,I just wish it hadn't come from Mr. Zaidi. He might be the undisputed king of crime reporting, but a storyteller he is not.
The timelines are awry, the characters are developed and scattered in a haphazard manner... There are over fifty characters and hundreds are mentioned through the book, tiring to say the least when there is (almost always) nothing memorable about them. The dialogues sound like some cheesy b grade movie, possibly due to the poor Hindi/marathi to English translation. The story does not progress in a fluid manner, but choppy and interrupted like a bunch of news clippings glued together.
It is disappointing to say the least, because the meteoric rise of Dawood makes for stellar storytelling. I guess with a story so good, you can rarely go wrong. But Mr. Zaidi gives it his best shot. I would still recommend this book, but only till something better comes along.
Full marks for research, though.
The timelines are awry, the characters are developed and scattered in a haphazard manner... There are over fifty characters and hundreds are mentioned through the book, tiring to say the least when there is (almost always) nothing memorable about them. The dialogues sound like some cheesy b grade movie, possibly due to the poor Hindi/marathi to English translation. The story does not progress in a fluid manner, but choppy and interrupted like a bunch of news clippings glued together.
It is disappointing to say the least, because the meteoric rise of Dawood makes for stellar storytelling. I guess with a story so good, you can rarely go wrong. But Mr. Zaidi gives it his best shot. I would still recommend this book, but only till something better comes along.
Full marks for research, though.
June 11, 2013
S. Hussain Zaidi is master in detailing the life of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim. I finished this book within 3 days & never wanted it to get end. Really, his hardwork of 6 years definitely made this book worth reading. He chronicles the details of not only dawood but also about others before him who started the smuggling & others illegal activities in mumbai. Though, you'll feel few dialogues in the book to be *cheesy* as if like it has taken by old bollywood movies on gangster. I read about dawood only in newspapers & sometimes in wikipedia but this book gave me the whole background of him. I felt that every gangster portray in this book deserve a full 90mins of movie to be made on him. I'm really looking forward to his other books i.e. Queens of Mumbai Mafia & Black Friday (though i watched the movie but still books will let you know more than the movie).
August 6, 2019
Written by India's ace crime reporter Hussain Zaidi, this is the first ever attempt to chronicle the birth and rise of Mumbai underworld. Combining his decades of experience in crime reporting with network of friends and contacts who gave him access to valuable documents, Zaidi creates a fast paced history of underworld. Never shy to mince words he does justice to all that happened in crime scene in Mumbai since Indian independence. One of the rare books on the subject, it is definitely a must read
January 24, 2015
First of all, a big thank you to Hussain Zaidi for writing this book. A book spanning six decades would have taken immense hard work more so when it is about the Mumbai Mafia. And he does pure justice to it.
After reading this book you can see why Bollywood loves charismatic underworld dons. Women, Money, Intelligence, Blood, Violence- they have everything going on for them.
Like any mortal in the world, Hussain Zaidi falls in love with the subject of his research but to his credit he maintains the objectivity throughout the book and calls a spade a spade.
After reading this book you can see why Bollywood loves charismatic underworld dons. Women, Money, Intelligence, Blood, Violence- they have everything going on for them.
Like any mortal in the world, Hussain Zaidi falls in love with the subject of his research but to his credit he maintains the objectivity throughout the book and calls a spade a spade.
October 15, 2022
Riveting account of Bombay's underworld dons, starting from the immigrants in the 50s and going all the way to the big D. For those interested in the lurid details of the underworld's functioning, this book is sure to whet your appetite
August 17, 2022
This book should've been called a brief history of the Bombay Mafia, quite extensive and detailed in it's coverage of the mafia's journey from the early smuggling days to the modern, post liberalization era. Part 1 of the book is written in a far superior manner than part 2 and reads like a Bollywood movie script, unsurprisingly since a lot of movies indeed take inspiration from true events. It was fun reading and making connections with pop culture, as the book gives a more complete perspective on incidents that I vaguely knew about.
The author is also rather balanced in his writing, reporting like a journalist in most cases and letting the reader form their own opinions based on hard fact. I also enjoyed the narrative style, it was similar to some other historical non fiction books that are narrated in story form like Freedom at midnight or parts of William dalrymple's books.
My biggest complain about this book is it's pretty poorly edited. Very often identical paragraphs get repeated, threads that were opened at some point don't get closed properly or are reintroduced abruptly and towards the end of this book, it just becomes much like a collection of articles and experiences.
Overall, the book does a good job of conveying the charm and character of Bombay through the decades, and let's you live through the crazy decades giving you a sense of how frequent and shocking the impact of the underworld had become, even in the lives of common people.
The author is also rather balanced in his writing, reporting like a journalist in most cases and letting the reader form their own opinions based on hard fact. I also enjoyed the narrative style, it was similar to some other historical non fiction books that are narrated in story form like Freedom at midnight or parts of William dalrymple's books.
My biggest complain about this book is it's pretty poorly edited. Very often identical paragraphs get repeated, threads that were opened at some point don't get closed properly or are reintroduced abruptly and towards the end of this book, it just becomes much like a collection of articles and experiences.
Overall, the book does a good job of conveying the charm and character of Bombay through the decades, and let's you live through the crazy decades giving you a sense of how frequent and shocking the impact of the underworld had become, even in the lives of common people.
January 5, 2020
This man is indeed a master storyteller. It feels like a guy is holding all of you in his spell in a pub, telling you a story which you didn't want to hear but now you want to listen till the end. Just like a guy at next seat of yours in a bus, started bragging about something.
But wait. These stories mind you, unlike above, happen to be true.
It was indeed a huge study and analysis subject which forced him to dig deeper. Even it made him to reach family members of gangster to bring out the truth which might was never be found.
It would be special treat for someone like me who once in his boypants aspired to be a gangster. :)
But wait. These stories mind you, unlike above, happen to be true.
It was indeed a huge study and analysis subject which forced him to dig deeper. Even it made him to reach family members of gangster to bring out the truth which might was never be found.
It would be special treat for someone like me who once in his boypants aspired to be a gangster. :)
May 16, 2020
Mumbai, a city that never sleeps, a city that dreams while being awakened, a city full of heights of glamour and wealth on one side and on the other, pitch dark silent ditches of poverty and deprivation. A unique city indeed! A city which is known by its stark contradictions; and in this unique city, these differences made a unique world, of its own type, that is called “Underworld”. This ‘underworld’ is not like as you have watched in the movies like ‘The Godfather’ or ‘Sarkar’ where you think it won’t affect you if you don’t cross the paths, but it is much like as you have watched in the movies like ‘Goodfellas’ or ‘Satya’ where you can’t guess the person who just had a casual talk with you in a restaurant might have murdered someone or was absconding from the police. Don’t confuse with the terminology, this world doesn’t lie under, but it exists, breaths, roams upon the earth, and very possibly, before you.
This book mostly talks about the rise of Dawood Ibrahim, the desi Al Pacino, but it is much more than that. It presents before us an expansive record of organized crimes, starting from the small gangs in early years of post-independent India to the establishments of the Corporate in retro period, then the bloodshed on roads, frequent supari (blood-money) killings, extortions, kidnappings, protection money, Bollywood connections of 1990s, hawala and then the Black Friday. Furthermore, it has considerable stuff to read about Dawood’s Dubai and Karachi years, and the then situations of underworld.
Like other great and mean works in country, gangs in Mumbai were first started by men from U.P. - Allahabadi gang, Kanpuri gang, Rampuri gang. Besides, there was a local Christian group that was called ‘Johnny gang’. Their main task was looting common people on the point of knives. Knives (Rampuri Chakoo) were the first weapon used by these gangsters. After that we see the emergence of Mastan Haider Mirza who comes Mumbai with his father from a village in Tamilnadu. Both father and son were destitute, after many failures to make the ends meet they established a cycle repairing shop. He worked there for eight years and realized that he won’t be able to make his life better by working in this rotten shop. He started working as coolie on the Majhgaon dockyard. In time, after being familiar with the whole system of export-import, he tried his hand in smuggling. First he smuggled goods like transistor and watches and then indulged himself in smuggling gold. He was honest, religious and trustworthy among his partners. Story of Mastan from rags to riches is spectacular. It has been the inspiration behind many Bollywood movies, such as Deewaar (1975), Once Upon a Time in Mumbai (2010), Shootout at Wadala (2013).
No doubt, Mastan was the most prominent gangster of his time, but there were other gangsters and Mafias too. Varadrajan Muniswami Mudaliyar and Karim Lala were also effective in the contemporary Bombay. Vardarajan was from Tamilnadu while Abdul Karim Khan aka Karim Lala was a pathan from Peshawar, the former dealt in illegal liquor while the latter was the owner of many illegal gambling dens. Lala’s side business was giving loans on interests and arbitrating in local feuds. At first, they were working separately but on the suggestion of Mastan, the trio formed an alliance to protect and help each other and also to oust small gangs from the scenario. Another man named Bashu Dada had also some importance then but the emergence of Dawood Ibrahim made him redundant.
Here comes the story of Dawood Ibrahim and I don’t think I should give you any introduction of this criminal. I just would like to say that Zaidi has delved deep and tried to describe every tidbit related to him. He was the first journalist who interviewed Dawood on phone for 45 minutes and it was, I think, after the Bombay-blasts. This book will provide every detail related to Dawood Ibrahim; his childhood, family, mischief, love-affairs, his rise to be a smuggler and mafia in Dongri, then his settlement in Dubai, and after the blasts, in Karachi; his living-style, eccentricities, hobbies and everything. Sometimes it seems that he is romanticizing a criminal. But, along with romanticization, Zaidi never fails to describe the historical, political, social and economical scenario of Mumbai, Dubai and Karachi and that’s what makes the book interesting.
Though Dawood is the main attraction, but stories of his allies/enemies are also given in detail. Chhota Shakeel, Chhota Rajan, Bada Rajan, Abu Salem, Arun Gawli, Rama Naik, Tiger Memon, Dawood’s own brothers and many other gangsters are described.
This was really a unique experience for me to read the history of organized crimes in such details, but the most fascinating thing was its action-packed fast narrative that gave the joy like watching a movie. The writer has done extensive research and I will say this book is a daring work.
September 28, 2013
I've read Hussain Zaidi's Mafia Queens of Mumbai and was impressed. Growing up, I had read a great deal about Haji mastan and Jenabai in Mum's magazines, while closeted in a dark, secluded space. Book was a reminder of tid bits I had picked up then.
Dongri to Dubai is his account of rise, growth and fall of underworld history in Mumbai from 1950s. It covers the background and reign of Karim Lala, Haji Mastan, Varadrajan, explains the ever-changing alliances and rivalries of the underworld. Pathan vs. Dawood, Dawood and Chota Rajan, Anees and Abu Salem, Dawood vs Chota Rajan, Dawood and Chota Shakeel so one. One could easily create a family tree of each gang in Underworld.
Hussain Zaidi has already written an accliamed 'Black Friday', further immortalised as eponymous movie. 1993 bomb blasts find mention in this book as well. However, Zaidi maintains that though Dawood funded 1993 blasts and funds fundamentalists groups against India in Pakistan, he is not a religious zealot, he is not even a practicising muslim. He is Konkani Sunni and doesn't believe in Wahhabism (religion of Saudi, Taliban, Al Quaeda), he does it for his survival in Pakistan.
A startling (but actually we have known before) piece of info was two innocent, profitable business of Dawood brothers - one of home-grown Gutka (helped to established in Pakistan by our own Mainkchand and Joshi businessmen) and hndi film pirated CDs. Money from these businesses are directly funded in jehadi activities against India. Sadaf and King's video are common pirated CDs sold in india, that are directly owned by D-company. So, our citizens in lieu of savinf few rupees for watching cinema actually fund terrorism, of which we ourselves are victims. Nice ploy.
Book also mentions various policemen and IB officials who have achieved soemthing crucial time to time. There are episodes of shootouts at Lokhandwala and Wadala (involving Manya Surve), which too have been immortalised as movies. It does state in the murky business of crime, no one, either be police or gangster is straight and it is increasingly one-way street for a gangster.
Book ends with US attitude to Indo-Pak relations and US Navy SEAL operation to kill Osama on Pakistani soil without the knowledge of Pakistani government, and considering how our 'hero' Dawood manages to live there in luxury, Indian feels like an incompetent lackey in contrast to US.
Writing is journalistic in style, that is storytelling backed by factual narration and book is very well-reasearched. I would recommend, anybody interested in history of crime in Bombay to pick this book for information.
Dongri to Dubai is his account of rise, growth and fall of underworld history in Mumbai from 1950s. It covers the background and reign of Karim Lala, Haji Mastan, Varadrajan, explains the ever-changing alliances and rivalries of the underworld. Pathan vs. Dawood, Dawood and Chota Rajan, Anees and Abu Salem, Dawood vs Chota Rajan, Dawood and Chota Shakeel so one. One could easily create a family tree of each gang in Underworld.
Hussain Zaidi has already written an accliamed 'Black Friday', further immortalised as eponymous movie. 1993 bomb blasts find mention in this book as well. However, Zaidi maintains that though Dawood funded 1993 blasts and funds fundamentalists groups against India in Pakistan, he is not a religious zealot, he is not even a practicising muslim. He is Konkani Sunni and doesn't believe in Wahhabism (religion of Saudi, Taliban, Al Quaeda), he does it for his survival in Pakistan.
A startling (but actually we have known before) piece of info was two innocent, profitable business of Dawood brothers - one of home-grown Gutka (helped to established in Pakistan by our own Mainkchand and Joshi businessmen) and hndi film pirated CDs. Money from these businesses are directly funded in jehadi activities against India. Sadaf and King's video are common pirated CDs sold in india, that are directly owned by D-company. So, our citizens in lieu of savinf few rupees for watching cinema actually fund terrorism, of which we ourselves are victims. Nice ploy.
Book also mentions various policemen and IB officials who have achieved soemthing crucial time to time. There are episodes of shootouts at Lokhandwala and Wadala (involving Manya Surve), which too have been immortalised as movies. It does state in the murky business of crime, no one, either be police or gangster is straight and it is increasingly one-way street for a gangster.
Book ends with US attitude to Indo-Pak relations and US Navy SEAL operation to kill Osama on Pakistani soil without the knowledge of Pakistani government, and considering how our 'hero' Dawood manages to live there in luxury, Indian feels like an incompetent lackey in contrast to US.
Writing is journalistic in style, that is storytelling backed by factual narration and book is very well-reasearched. I would recommend, anybody interested in history of crime in Bombay to pick this book for information.
April 20, 2013
This book has a major identity problem. On the outset, the book appears to only chronicle the infamous don's life story but then the author gets into this Mario Puzo style of recounting the entire yesteryear Mumbai mafia's transformation from one phase into another not to mention the feeble attempt to make you-know-who be given a Vito Corleone-ish shade.
Oh and there is sex strewn here and there à la Sunny Corleone and Lucy Mancini type of crude stuff but with poor taste. Seriously, the author talks about how a certain thug liked to spit on his madame and lick it, ugh. Notice the 'Godfather' connection? come on Mr. Zaidi! Also, one has to wonder, how did the author know?
Anyways, I am not going to deny the author his 4 stars not for the way he intended his readers would absorb it but for my own preferences.
Allow me to elucidate.
Have you ever been to a tea shop in a rural Indian village where there is always that one guy who knew everything about everyone and for a sponsored chai or beedi was willing to make your tea break interesting with some latest village gossip? That is how I pictured Mr. Hussain Zaidi while going through this book.
Excellent narrative style, a not-so-stellar but good enough research work and good proof reading provides for decent quality content.
Total time-pass book.
Oh and there is sex strewn here and there à la Sunny Corleone and Lucy Mancini type of crude stuff but with poor taste. Seriously, the author talks about how a certain thug liked to spit on his madame and lick it, ugh. Notice the 'Godfather' connection? come on Mr. Zaidi! Also, one has to wonder, how did the author know?
Anyways, I am not going to deny the author his 4 stars not for the way he intended his readers would absorb it but for my own preferences.
Allow me to elucidate.
Have you ever been to a tea shop in a rural Indian village where there is always that one guy who knew everything about everyone and for a sponsored chai or beedi was willing to make your tea break interesting with some latest village gossip? That is how I pictured Mr. Hussain Zaidi while going through this book.
Excellent narrative style, a not-so-stellar but good enough research work and good proof reading provides for decent quality content.
Total time-pass book.
March 21, 2013
The book starts with a telephonic conversation between a veteran crime journalist and the man himself, post which the plot becomes narrative. Largely based on the making of the D-Company and rise & fall of men associated, the initial half details out the humble beginning of the underworld during Independence which also forms the background of the book. The latter half talks about life and love of Dawood which are intricately woven into a series of incidents which the journalist has very meticulously time-lined.
Among the sub-plots, sequential events and detailed accounts on the stalwarts of crime, the book also offers interesting trivia about the etymology of the commonly used words in Mumbai mafia, the basis of gang formation, and even naming the first history-sheeter in the Mumbai police records.
A great insight into the labyrinth-al world of one of the most feared men in India - Dawood.
September 11, 2015
Once I started reading the book, I had to finish it at the earliest before I could go back to my normal routine.
It is a must read book for the readers interested to learn about the clandestine world of Mumbai mafia and boasts to be the most comprehensive account of Mumbai underworld portrayed till date.
Author truly deserves kudos for depicting the real life events of ghastly gangsters in a mode of story-telling. However, reader is sometimes left with the sense of reading something 'filmy' in which author has knowingly or unknowingly lionized the criminals.
Also, there were some open ends in the book where reader is rendered wondering why or why not, which is perhaps not the author's fault as here we are dealing with the multi-faceted yet covert world of underworld.
But in the nutshell, you cannot resist reading it.
Regards,
Aditya
It is a must read book for the readers interested to learn about the clandestine world of Mumbai mafia and boasts to be the most comprehensive account of Mumbai underworld portrayed till date.
Author truly deserves kudos for depicting the real life events of ghastly gangsters in a mode of story-telling. However, reader is sometimes left with the sense of reading something 'filmy' in which author has knowingly or unknowingly lionized the criminals.
Also, there were some open ends in the book where reader is rendered wondering why or why not, which is perhaps not the author's fault as here we are dealing with the multi-faceted yet covert world of underworld.
But in the nutshell, you cannot resist reading it.
Regards,
Aditya
November 27, 2020
Heavily researched and meticulously penned by Hussain Zaidi, this book explores the Mumbai underworld along with its heroes especially the infamous D-company king Dawood Ibrahim and his syndicate journey. Greatly insightful and powerful storytelling.
March 20, 2015
Starts off very well and gives great insights into the history of underworld in Mumbai. The narration is taut and it almost feels like that you are reading the script of a Bollywood film. However, there are way too many characters (Dons) and the unabashedly sensational writing left me exhausted as I reached the end!
June 28, 2017
Annals of Mumbai crime history. A fascinating topic. A chronology of Gangsters( Haji Mastan, Karim Lala, Varardhrajan Mudliar, Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar) who came, ruled and went away. It is similar to those history book lessons where we learn about Babur, Humayun, Akbar, how they came to India and went away with their indelible mark on the country. Same can be said for these gentlemen who scarred Mumbai with their characteristic marks upon the city.
All of my friends have been asking me that why did I even pick this book up. I am a guy who gets fascinated by books generally based on finance and economics. Then why this? Ironically the answer was hidden in economics only as it turned out that what intrigued me, why do these people do what they do? Where do they come from? How do they become larger than life figures?, was hidden in the economic condition of the city since independence.
India liberalized in 1991, until then it was a pretty closed economy as the regulaitons were draconian and government used to call the shots in deciding which facilities are required in the country and how much. Imports in the country was heavily regulated and where everyone else saw hopelessness for the economic future of the country, some men saw a window of opportunity for themselves. I noticed that all the young kids who later turned out to be the kingpins, were unemployed, it was impossible for them to make ends meet without stealing food and only quick ways of making money enticed them.
Call it their destiny or not, all of them started their careers in crime through docks(ports). The initial capital required to feed themselves off was earned through stealing of imported products and selling them in the grey market. As the quantum of larceny grew, so did the net worth of these individuals. Haji Mastan was the first among these gangsters to make a fortune out of it. Mumbai and the border cities of Gujarat area have always been rife with smuggling instances and the more organized one's business is there, the more rich he's going to be.
As Haji Mastan became a big time smuggler, he realized that he needed clout in the city to exercise his power without dirtying his hands. Here came in the symbiotic relation of Varardharajan Mudliar, Karim Lala and Haji Mastan. Haji Mastan was the financier whereas the other two were the kingpins who could just get any work done in the city be it money through extortion, assassinations and what not. For long time this trio had the strings of the city in their hands and no force could seem to stop them. Mumbai Police was nowhere in the picture until now and to be frank they were no match to the formidable alliance as they always fell prey to the bribes offered to them.
There was one policeman though who refused to bow down before these gangsters, head constable Ibrahim Kaskar. He was one of the most honest officer in the force at that time and such was his honesty that he earned himself three fans, Karim Lala, Haji Mastan and Vardha Bhai. Even though he lived in the same locatlity as them, he always used to denounce their activities and brought them to the station at every chance. No one could dare to touch Ibrahim Kaskar such was his clout and respect even among the goons. But as they say life is not fair to the person who sacrifices everything for honesty and integrity. He got implicated in a murder case and was charged with the abetment of crime and in the process lost his job. Feeding the family was getting difficult by the day and 4 boys and 3 girls didn't help the cause. His children were deprived of the education while the gangsters helped him enough to stay afloat. His eldest son and his little brother then realized that the world is cruel and one needs to snatch one's own share from the others. Thus, Dawood and Sabir Ibrahim Kaskar were born.
Dawood was second (in age) only to Sabir but such was his acumen and fervor to become big even at such a young age that even Sabir chose to play second fiddle to him. He committed his first crime around age of 15 when he stole a loaf of bread from a passerby. Eventually he was caught by his own father who thrashed him taught him the hard way that life of honesty and integrity only will help one achieve prosperity but Dawood saw no substance in his claim as he saw his father doing so and barely making ends meet. His ingenuity was very helpful to him in the crime world as he was always quick to realize business opportunities and would leave no stone unturned to become a monopoly in that.
Multiple gang wars, broken promises, wounded egos wreaked havoc in Mumbai as through this bloodbath, Dawood was anointed as the undisputed kingpin of Mumbai replacing the trio. He had his firm hand upon everything extortion rackets, bribing of police officers, organized smuggling, land grabbing etc. His never ending hunger to become the most powerful man in the world made him what the world knows of him today. He always used to compare himself with the US president and evidently he always used to his name as White House whether it was in Mumbai, Dubai or Karachi.
Mumbai police had a big role in creating their own Frankenstein as they saw a twisted logic in supporting Dawood in his initial days. Since the mayhem in the city was at all time high as the Pathan gangs had created a state of anarchy in the city, they came up with a novel idea of using Dawood and his gang to clean up the more established gangs of the city. Their logic was to support an outlaw(Dawood) and use to kill all the other outlaws and since at the end, only one outlaw(Dawood) that they had created will remain, police will easily overpower him. But as it turned out, they created their own arch nemesis who not only eliminated all his arch enemies with the official support, but now had access to the only organization which had the mettle to stop him. It was a well known fact that Dawood has always been one step ahead of the authorities as his connections in the police force always helped him to flee just in time.
Dawood was just a thug till his early thirties who got big by all the activities mentioned above. His daring assassinations were creating a lot of problems for the Mumbai Police but still he managed to keep himself out of the jails. But what happened in 1993 changed everything as the bomb blasts in Mumbai shook the world. Dawood provided ISI and Al qaeda with logistical support by providing RDX and other explosives. The author claims that he saw it only as a business deal and never thought that ISI had an event this big in mind. Indian media had a field day as they salvaged their TRPs by brandishing Dawood as a traitor. Dawood was really moved by the turn of events. He even offered to surrender to the Indian government. His only condition was that he is ready to face the music only if the Indian government drops all the previous charges against him. Government denied it in the name of democracy but there was another version of this story as well which highlighted the potential threats these politicians and top brass of the police faced if Dawood really surrendered and confessed his crimes.
Dawood generally shuttled between Dubai and Karachi. He has been treated like a king in Pakistan more out of necessity than free will. The author clearly outlined the vicious circle which was started by Dawood and how he eventually got himself trapped in it:
1) Dawood raises Illegal money through illicit activities like piracy, extortion etc.
2) He provided these funds to ISI which further distributed this money to terror outfits like Al qaeda, Jaish-e-Mohammad etc.
3) Primary objective of ISI behind this funding was to disrupt peace in India but eventually they got themselves overly dependent on Dawood's money.
4) This made him an indispensable financer in the system.
5) Due to this, he enjoyed a reluctant immunity from the ISI, government and military of Pakistan which was very essential after being declared as an SDGT (Specially Designated Global Terrorist) by UN.
There are plenty of stories to be read in the book as it highlights the famous personalities influenced by underworld which includes big names of Salman Khan, Rani Mukharjee, Abbas Mastan etc. It gave me a new perspective as I myself went and stayed the city for 2 months and even though I got all this information after I came back from the city, it still was an adventurous journey.
All of my friends have been asking me that why did I even pick this book up. I am a guy who gets fascinated by books generally based on finance and economics. Then why this? Ironically the answer was hidden in economics only as it turned out that what intrigued me, why do these people do what they do? Where do they come from? How do they become larger than life figures?, was hidden in the economic condition of the city since independence.
India liberalized in 1991, until then it was a pretty closed economy as the regulaitons were draconian and government used to call the shots in deciding which facilities are required in the country and how much. Imports in the country was heavily regulated and where everyone else saw hopelessness for the economic future of the country, some men saw a window of opportunity for themselves. I noticed that all the young kids who later turned out to be the kingpins, were unemployed, it was impossible for them to make ends meet without stealing food and only quick ways of making money enticed them.
Call it their destiny or not, all of them started their careers in crime through docks(ports). The initial capital required to feed themselves off was earned through stealing of imported products and selling them in the grey market. As the quantum of larceny grew, so did the net worth of these individuals. Haji Mastan was the first among these gangsters to make a fortune out of it. Mumbai and the border cities of Gujarat area have always been rife with smuggling instances and the more organized one's business is there, the more rich he's going to be.
As Haji Mastan became a big time smuggler, he realized that he needed clout in the city to exercise his power without dirtying his hands. Here came in the symbiotic relation of Varardharajan Mudliar, Karim Lala and Haji Mastan. Haji Mastan was the financier whereas the other two were the kingpins who could just get any work done in the city be it money through extortion, assassinations and what not. For long time this trio had the strings of the city in their hands and no force could seem to stop them. Mumbai Police was nowhere in the picture until now and to be frank they were no match to the formidable alliance as they always fell prey to the bribes offered to them.
There was one policeman though who refused to bow down before these gangsters, head constable Ibrahim Kaskar. He was one of the most honest officer in the force at that time and such was his honesty that he earned himself three fans, Karim Lala, Haji Mastan and Vardha Bhai. Even though he lived in the same locatlity as them, he always used to denounce their activities and brought them to the station at every chance. No one could dare to touch Ibrahim Kaskar such was his clout and respect even among the goons. But as they say life is not fair to the person who sacrifices everything for honesty and integrity. He got implicated in a murder case and was charged with the abetment of crime and in the process lost his job. Feeding the family was getting difficult by the day and 4 boys and 3 girls didn't help the cause. His children were deprived of the education while the gangsters helped him enough to stay afloat. His eldest son and his little brother then realized that the world is cruel and one needs to snatch one's own share from the others. Thus, Dawood and Sabir Ibrahim Kaskar were born.
Dawood was second (in age) only to Sabir but such was his acumen and fervor to become big even at such a young age that even Sabir chose to play second fiddle to him. He committed his first crime around age of 15 when he stole a loaf of bread from a passerby. Eventually he was caught by his own father who thrashed him taught him the hard way that life of honesty and integrity only will help one achieve prosperity but Dawood saw no substance in his claim as he saw his father doing so and barely making ends meet. His ingenuity was very helpful to him in the crime world as he was always quick to realize business opportunities and would leave no stone unturned to become a monopoly in that.
Multiple gang wars, broken promises, wounded egos wreaked havoc in Mumbai as through this bloodbath, Dawood was anointed as the undisputed kingpin of Mumbai replacing the trio. He had his firm hand upon everything extortion rackets, bribing of police officers, organized smuggling, land grabbing etc. His never ending hunger to become the most powerful man in the world made him what the world knows of him today. He always used to compare himself with the US president and evidently he always used to his name as White House whether it was in Mumbai, Dubai or Karachi.
Mumbai police had a big role in creating their own Frankenstein as they saw a twisted logic in supporting Dawood in his initial days. Since the mayhem in the city was at all time high as the Pathan gangs had created a state of anarchy in the city, they came up with a novel idea of using Dawood and his gang to clean up the more established gangs of the city. Their logic was to support an outlaw(Dawood) and use to kill all the other outlaws and since at the end, only one outlaw(Dawood) that they had created will remain, police will easily overpower him. But as it turned out, they created their own arch nemesis who not only eliminated all his arch enemies with the official support, but now had access to the only organization which had the mettle to stop him. It was a well known fact that Dawood has always been one step ahead of the authorities as his connections in the police force always helped him to flee just in time.
Dawood was just a thug till his early thirties who got big by all the activities mentioned above. His daring assassinations were creating a lot of problems for the Mumbai Police but still he managed to keep himself out of the jails. But what happened in 1993 changed everything as the bomb blasts in Mumbai shook the world. Dawood provided ISI and Al qaeda with logistical support by providing RDX and other explosives. The author claims that he saw it only as a business deal and never thought that ISI had an event this big in mind. Indian media had a field day as they salvaged their TRPs by brandishing Dawood as a traitor. Dawood was really moved by the turn of events. He even offered to surrender to the Indian government. His only condition was that he is ready to face the music only if the Indian government drops all the previous charges against him. Government denied it in the name of democracy but there was another version of this story as well which highlighted the potential threats these politicians and top brass of the police faced if Dawood really surrendered and confessed his crimes.
Dawood generally shuttled between Dubai and Karachi. He has been treated like a king in Pakistan more out of necessity than free will. The author clearly outlined the vicious circle which was started by Dawood and how he eventually got himself trapped in it:
1) Dawood raises Illegal money through illicit activities like piracy, extortion etc.
2) He provided these funds to ISI which further distributed this money to terror outfits like Al qaeda, Jaish-e-Mohammad etc.
3) Primary objective of ISI behind this funding was to disrupt peace in India but eventually they got themselves overly dependent on Dawood's money.
4) This made him an indispensable financer in the system.
5) Due to this, he enjoyed a reluctant immunity from the ISI, government and military of Pakistan which was very essential after being declared as an SDGT (Specially Designated Global Terrorist) by UN.
There are plenty of stories to be read in the book as it highlights the famous personalities influenced by underworld which includes big names of Salman Khan, Rani Mukharjee, Abbas Mastan etc. It gave me a new perspective as I myself went and stayed the city for 2 months and even though I got all this information after I came back from the city, it still was an adventurous journey.
January 24, 2019
Took a bit long to finish this book but almost each chapter in it were like script of some bollywood movies.
I came across this book after reading Ghamkiri by Nayanraj Pandey where he mentions an incident where Dawood’s brother shabir was killed by Manya Survey gang. I then saw John Ibrahim’s Shootout at Waadala and then came this book.
I simply was having images of Amitabh from Deewar (Tum log mujhe dhood rahe ho aur mai tumhara yahan intajar kar raha hun) to Imran Hasmi from Once upon a time in Mumbai. The list goes on and on.
More on this book will follow later...
Highly recommend (especially to Gangster Movie fans from Bollywood)
I came across this book after reading Ghamkiri by Nayanraj Pandey where he mentions an incident where Dawood’s brother shabir was killed by Manya Survey gang. I then saw John Ibrahim’s Shootout at Waadala and then came this book.
I simply was having images of Amitabh from Deewar (Tum log mujhe dhood rahe ho aur mai tumhara yahan intajar kar raha hun) to Imran Hasmi from Once upon a time in Mumbai. The list goes on and on.
More on this book will follow later...
Highly recommend (especially to Gangster Movie fans from Bollywood)
December 14, 2025
The lozenges of crime, cinema and cricket wrapped with the shiny foil of politics never fail to fuel us, and this book, in an exemplary success of daftness of the writer, concocts the fascinatingly dark saga of the Mumbai mafia.
The incidents and encounters, though collected from the cupboard of time feel as fresh as a freshly brewed coffee that creates that blinding rush which doesn't wear off even after you finish the book.
The helplessness of the have-nots and utter negligence towards them by the powers that be still remain the central recipe for cooking dark glass flaunting, gun-toting and cigarette-smoking gangsters.
Happy reading.
The incidents and encounters, though collected from the cupboard of time feel as fresh as a freshly brewed coffee that creates that blinding rush which doesn't wear off even after you finish the book.
The helplessness of the have-nots and utter negligence towards them by the powers that be still remain the central recipe for cooking dark glass flaunting, gun-toting and cigarette-smoking gangsters.
Happy reading.
October 5, 2020
Amazing Informative book...
The books revolve around India's most wanted man - Dawod Ibrahim & early Indian mafia. Every chapter is a ton of thrilling and exciting stories of the Rising ganglords of the Indian Mafia.
If you are interested to know about Mumbai Mafia this book is completely for you.
I'm giving this book 3 stars because the book is not able to generate the eagerness to read it at once. I was only able to read 2-3 chapters at once after that I feel bored. Overall good informative Book by S. Hussain Zaidi.
The books revolve around India's most wanted man - Dawod Ibrahim & early Indian mafia. Every chapter is a ton of thrilling and exciting stories of the Rising ganglords of the Indian Mafia.
If you are interested to know about Mumbai Mafia this book is completely for you.
I'm giving this book 3 stars because the book is not able to generate the eagerness to read it at once. I was only able to read 2-3 chapters at once after that I feel bored. Overall good informative Book by S. Hussain Zaidi.
November 3, 2012
As a chronicle of the Mumbai mafia, this book does complete justice to the job. While the 'hero' remains the big D, the author traces the history of Bombay's underworld from the 1950's until Operation Neptune Spear - Bin Laden's death - and its repercussions on Dawood.
The book begins with an interview with Dawood Ibrahim in 1997, the last published one, and one that is credited to the author himself, spends a chapter that serves as a synopsis of the don's life thus far and then quickly zooms back to the 50s and 60s focusing on the birth of Mumbai's underworld. The triumvirate of Haji Mastan, Karim Lala, and Varadarajan Mudaliar feature prominently in the next few chapters, which are dedicated to the intricacies of gold and electronics smuggling, bootlegging, minor extortion, the prostitution trade, dispute settling and other activities that filled the coffers of Mastan and his allies. Mastan's search for 'legitimacy' and associations with Bollywood and politics are also highlighted, as is the beginning of the underworld's nexus with the cops and politicians.
The book then moves on to Dawood's rise - starting from the toppling of Dongri's incumbent don Baashu Dada to his heist of what he wrongly thought was Mastan's money and beyond. This section also throws light on the influence of Ibrahim Kaskar, Dawood's father, a cop who also enjoyed the respect of most of the era's prominent dons. The emergency, Dawood's feud with the Pathans, the attempt at a truce at the behest of Mastan, its worsening with the killing of Dawood's brother, and his subsequent scaling of business form the next few chapters. This also marks the beginning of the second tier of his organisation's hierarchy - Chhota and Bada Rajan, Chhota Shakeel and later, Anees Ibrahim (Dawood's brother) and Abu Salem. The Mumbai Police' hand in Dawood's rise is chronicled clearly. The demise of the Pathans and the first major round of bloodshed in the mafia's history are inextricably tied together.
Just before Part 2 - Dawood's relocation to Dubai and the creation of his empire - is a chapter dedicated to his failed love, and then marriage. The operations from Dubai are chronicled really well and not only shows the growing power of the don in terms of settling gang wars, but also his hand in everything from Bollywood to the construction business. The shootout at Lokhandwala and Chhota Rajan's hand in increasing Dawood's clout make up the first few chapters in this section. Babri Masjid and the subsequent Mumbai blasts are probably epochal events in Dawood's life. The book goes soft on his involvement in the blasts though, and holds that he was not a very religious man, and was so stung by accusations that he tried to negotiate a surrender to prove his innocence. But that never happened.
The rumours about Mandakini, split with Rajan and the rise of Shakeel, and relocation to Karachi happen next. Abu Salem's killing of Gulshan Kumar and the Mumbai cops' crackdowns on the underworld are the focus here. A few chapters are reserved for Rajan and his escapes from Shakeel's henchmen. The mafia's obsession with Bollywood is clearly shown through the 'Chori Chori Chupke Chupke' episode where stars and directors were threatened to be part of the mafia's maiden film venture. Dawood's hand in the gutka wars and the marriage of his daughter with Miandad's son also have pages devoted to them - and that includes the IB's botched attempt (courtesy the Maharashtra police!) at knocking off Dawood. Dawood's status escalation to international terrorist and making it to the Forbes list of the world's most powerful men close the book, with the last chapter dedicated to his short term absence from Karachi post Bin Laden's death.
The book does a great job of capturing information - whether it be the gangs' operations and domains, their nuanced inter relationships (friendships and rivalries), the milieu that set up their increased prominence, their relationship with Bollywood (including how piracy in Pakistan fund international terrorism!) and most importantly, their love-hate stance with the Mumbai cops. The writing style is very journalistic in the beginning, almost written like a series of episodes with hype built for the entry of Dawood, but later takes a more conventional form. It is extremely well researched and a must read if you're interested in the domain.
The book begins with an interview with Dawood Ibrahim in 1997, the last published one, and one that is credited to the author himself, spends a chapter that serves as a synopsis of the don's life thus far and then quickly zooms back to the 50s and 60s focusing on the birth of Mumbai's underworld. The triumvirate of Haji Mastan, Karim Lala, and Varadarajan Mudaliar feature prominently in the next few chapters, which are dedicated to the intricacies of gold and electronics smuggling, bootlegging, minor extortion, the prostitution trade, dispute settling and other activities that filled the coffers of Mastan and his allies. Mastan's search for 'legitimacy' and associations with Bollywood and politics are also highlighted, as is the beginning of the underworld's nexus with the cops and politicians.
The book then moves on to Dawood's rise - starting from the toppling of Dongri's incumbent don Baashu Dada to his heist of what he wrongly thought was Mastan's money and beyond. This section also throws light on the influence of Ibrahim Kaskar, Dawood's father, a cop who also enjoyed the respect of most of the era's prominent dons. The emergency, Dawood's feud with the Pathans, the attempt at a truce at the behest of Mastan, its worsening with the killing of Dawood's brother, and his subsequent scaling of business form the next few chapters. This also marks the beginning of the second tier of his organisation's hierarchy - Chhota and Bada Rajan, Chhota Shakeel and later, Anees Ibrahim (Dawood's brother) and Abu Salem. The Mumbai Police' hand in Dawood's rise is chronicled clearly. The demise of the Pathans and the first major round of bloodshed in the mafia's history are inextricably tied together.
Just before Part 2 - Dawood's relocation to Dubai and the creation of his empire - is a chapter dedicated to his failed love, and then marriage. The operations from Dubai are chronicled really well and not only shows the growing power of the don in terms of settling gang wars, but also his hand in everything from Bollywood to the construction business. The shootout at Lokhandwala and Chhota Rajan's hand in increasing Dawood's clout make up the first few chapters in this section. Babri Masjid and the subsequent Mumbai blasts are probably epochal events in Dawood's life. The book goes soft on his involvement in the blasts though, and holds that he was not a very religious man, and was so stung by accusations that he tried to negotiate a surrender to prove his innocence. But that never happened.
The rumours about Mandakini, split with Rajan and the rise of Shakeel, and relocation to Karachi happen next. Abu Salem's killing of Gulshan Kumar and the Mumbai cops' crackdowns on the underworld are the focus here. A few chapters are reserved for Rajan and his escapes from Shakeel's henchmen. The mafia's obsession with Bollywood is clearly shown through the 'Chori Chori Chupke Chupke' episode where stars and directors were threatened to be part of the mafia's maiden film venture. Dawood's hand in the gutka wars and the marriage of his daughter with Miandad's son also have pages devoted to them - and that includes the IB's botched attempt (courtesy the Maharashtra police!) at knocking off Dawood. Dawood's status escalation to international terrorist and making it to the Forbes list of the world's most powerful men close the book, with the last chapter dedicated to his short term absence from Karachi post Bin Laden's death.
The book does a great job of capturing information - whether it be the gangs' operations and domains, their nuanced inter relationships (friendships and rivalries), the milieu that set up their increased prominence, their relationship with Bollywood (including how piracy in Pakistan fund international terrorism!) and most importantly, their love-hate stance with the Mumbai cops. The writing style is very journalistic in the beginning, almost written like a series of episodes with hype built for the entry of Dawood, but later takes a more conventional form. It is extremely well researched and a must read if you're interested in the domain.
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