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How Underworld Entered Bollywood – Part 3
The D Gang’s clout was all pervading.  All top stars – heroes, heroines and producers – were forced to fly to Dubai and perform for bhai’s events. There is video footage of stars hobnobbing with the Don at a Sharjah cricket match. A ‘No’ was not an option. And the job of terrorizing the film industry was entrusted to the handsome gangster Abu Salem, now languishing in Taloja jail, on the outskirts of Mumbai. Abu Salem almost threatened every top actor and producer. One of the early victims was Rajiv Rai, son of Gulshan Rai of Trimurti Films fame. He fled to the UK with his wife Sonam and son after a failed attempt on his life by Abu Salem’s henchmen. Gulshan Kumar of T Series fame was chased and gunned down. Bollywood biggies – producer-director Subhash Ghai, Manmohan Shetty, and Rakesh Roshan received threatening calls from Abu Salem. Rakesh Roshan survived a brutal murderous attack, and luckily recovered from gunshots wounds. Not unlike Haji Mastan, Abu Salem too needed his share of Bollywood beauties – and he got Monica Bedi. His threat forced producers to cast her opposite big stars in movies like Jodi No 1, and Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat. In September 2002, Monica Bedi and Abu Salem were arrested in Portugal. After serving prison sentences there, they were deported to India. To cut to the chase, the gangsters had paid informers in the film industry who tipped them about stars’ financials – movie signing amount, movie release date etc. Armed with this information, the underworld would make extortion calls. The Bollywood-Underworld nexus became apparent when Mumbai serial blasts of 1993 was investigated.  READ PART 4

TRENDS & VIEWS

Editor’s Note: Short Post Noticed By People Who Matter

Four years have zipped by and we are crossing another milestone on 31st January 2025 – it’s our 4th Anniversary. It feels good.
Looking back at the 1460 days, I must say Short Post has made its mark with people who matter via 4000 stories published in the areas of politics, business, entertainment and sports. All made possible by the unflinching commitment and dedication of our senior editors, most of whom have been part of this journey from Day One.
Small pack, big impact is in essence the story of Short Post which was launched at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021. It shows our conviction. In all humility, I can say, we have created a new niche in the news segment space like Hindustan Unilever which created a new segment, when it launched CloseUp Gel.
Yes, we have created a brand (in a limited sense), created demand (readers) and created supply (senior journalists). But we are facing teething problems like all start-ups. What makes us happy and confident is the recognition of our efforts. For instance, we have an arrangement with the OPEN Magazine, part of the $4.5 billion Kolkata-based Sanjiv Goenka-RPG Group. This arrangement sees around 10 Short Post stories posted on OPEN Magazine website every week. This arrangement is testimony that our content has been well received! Also, I may add that the Maharashtra government has recognised Short Post and has allowed our senior editor to cover the Assembly sessions. Ditto: Odisha.
Our goal is to ensure that Short Post becomes a habit. I would like people to keep checking their smartphones to know the latest Authentic Gossip. As regards AI and the fear of it disrupting all businesses including media. On that, personally, I have no such fear as I am confident AI cannot smell news particularly Authentic Gossip. That’s the place we are well entrenched.