MUMBAI: Ram Gopal Varma needs to be credited for capturing the of the underworld and the mafia in his films. Be it ‘Satya’ or ‘Company’. But while that may just be a filmy sense of a gangster creating havoc in people’s lives, Bollywood in reality has had a tyrannical past with the Big Daddy, to simply put it ‘The Underworld’.
The last major incident one remembers is the underworld attacking filmmaker Rakesh Roshan, when ‘Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai’ released. The director nearly escaped death. But ever since and over the years, it all seemed that Underworld had slowed down or was in temporary suspension mode with Bollywood. But with the recent threat calls to producer Boney Kapoor and Karan Johar, it all opens like a book, all over again.
But it raises one huge question as to why the big daddy is targeting Bollywood once again. The reason may be too simple. It’s probably the ‘100 crore effect’! With films like ‘Chennai Express’, ‘Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’ doing well at the box-office, and many following same route in recent times, looks like it’s game on for the Underworld once again. They probably have come back only to demand their share!
Several cases of films being produced by ‘The Underworld’ raised questions over Bollywood’s secret association. One instance was when ‘Chori Chori Chupke Chupke’ featuring Salman Khan, Rani Mukherji and Preity Zinta was in controversy for being funded by the underworld and a certain Nazim Hassan Rizvi (disappeared since then!) was credited for being associated with the film as a producer.
In fact the actors, director (Abbas-Mastan) have also confessed in a famous book that it was a certain fear that instilled them to complete the film. This goes to show how the underworld has influenced the glamorous Bollywood and wrapped it in blankets of fear and terror.
The turbulent past that Bollywood has had with the underworld dates back to times when music baron Gulshan Kumar made front-page news. The T-series honcho was murdered in broad daylight and had supposedly refused to part with music rights. Similar attacks on Rakesh Roshan, Rajiv Rai instilled a fear on Bollywood.
Directors, producers with a HIT in their name with their successful films were established easy targets in the hit-list of the big daddy and with the mafia trying to establish its prowess in Bollywood, incidents of threat calls to producers and even actors had been a common affair.
Several actors also appeared in court, filed complaints of threat calls and extortion calls, many turned hostile for the sheer fear, the exception being Preity Zinta who boldly claimed of receiving calls.
While Boney Kapoor and Karan Johar, have filed complaints at Oshiwara and Khar Police stations respectively, of receiving threat and extortion calls and an SMS from an unknown numbers, it may probably take another message or call to withdraw the complaints as well!
After all where there’s money, there is also greed and deceit. Bollywood’s dark chapter sadly has begun to haunt it again!
