When didis took over dadagiri

Though the Charlie’s Angels trio is making waves in the West as daredevil crime busters, their counterparts in Mumbai’s underworld are blazing a different trail as partners in organised crime.

There is no dearth of nanis, mummys, didis or heroines in Mumbai’s crime world and they have made a niche for themselves by running gangs on their own or helping their mentors, lovers or husbands in running the lucrative crime business.

In the early 70s, Bela ‘Aunty’ was the uncrowned queen of the illicit liquor business in the city and suburbs. The state excise department or its flying squads did not even try to stop the scores of vehicles carrying spurious booze into the city. The monthly bribe she paid to the concerned officers was said to be more than their monthly salaries. Even Vardhabhai, the then underworld don, could not stop her from selling liquor in his heartland of Dharavi, Matunga and Sion-Koliwada.

Then there was this lean, tall and elderly Jena Bi whose guest list at her Nagpada residence including underworld big wigs like Karim Lala, Haji Mastan and the officers from Crime Branch. Though she never ran a gang of her own, but major gangsters and smugglers, never disobeyed her orders. She was known for her fairness and firmness during settlement of disputes of all kinds.

Charming Rahima Khan, well known as Sapna, got her nickname ‘didi’ after she married gangster and contract killer Mehmood Kaliya. The dark-skinned Kaliya knew the dangers when she married her.

To deter others from his crime clan, he forced them to address his wife as Didi (sister) to protect her from the lecherous glances of  hardcore criminals. After the murder of Kaliya, Sapna Didi married a serving sub inspector but her secret lovers did not let her live long. She was brutally murdered at her residence at Nagpada in February 1990.

Shilpa Zaveri was a name to reckon with in the city streets when she befriended dreaded gangster and Karim Lala’s nephew Samad Khan. When Samad Khan was released on bail in a case by the sessions court, another police team was waiting across the road to re-arrest him another case. Then Shilpa, a champion driver, drove a car at a high speed to the court doorstep and whisked away her paramour even before anyone could blink. Ironically, Samad Khan was shot dead by his rival when he came out of the lift after meeting her at Tardeo.

Rubina Siraj Syed alias ‘heroine’ became famous when he joined the Chhota Shakeel gang and supplied food, arms and money to the gang members behind bars and those operating from outside. She used her charm and gab of the glib to influence cops and received vital tip-offs which she passed on to her mentors. She is now serving a sentence at the Byculla prison.

Arun Gawli’s wife is known as ‘mummy’ as her husband is ‘daddy’, willingly or otherwise. She looked after ‘daddy’s business when he was externed from city limits for two years.

And, now, Sujata Nikhalje alias ‘nani’ has been booked by the police under MCOCA for running the empire on behalf of her husband Chhota Rajan. But it is not the end of the road for these women made of a different stuff, while some fade away with the tide of time, others stay on to carry on the business as usual.