Shahid Kapoor’s character in the film O Romeo is inspired by Mumbai’s notorious gangster Hussain Ustra.
Hussain Ustra and Shahid Kapoor’s film O Romeo is in the news these days. It is gaining a lot of headlines. Dawood Ibrahim’s name has also been linked to this story, so people’s interest is very high. Hussain Ustra was once Dawood’s arch enemy. Meanwhile, Hussain’s daughter has created a stir by sending a legal notice to the film producers. On the other hand, the filmmakers have said that their film is just fiction. It has no connection with any character.
Which way will this dispute turn? What impact will Hussain’s daughter’s legal notice have on the health of film makers? Time will decide whether the film will be released in February or whether the matter will go to court. Here we will try to know who was Dawood’s arch enemy Hussain Ustra? What was his real name and how did Razor become associated with his name? How did he become enmity with David?
Mumbai’s dreaded gangster
Hussain Ustra was a name in the underworld of Mumbai, whose personality was completely opposite to his work. This man, who usually wore kurta and pajama, was lean and always smiling, looked very ordinary at first glance. Looking at him no one could have guessed that he was a dangerous criminal.
Hussain Ustra was fond of establishing his influence. He used to have three-four mobile phones in those days when every incoming and outgoing call was very expensive. He used different phones for work, family and his girlfriend.
Mumbai’s notorious gangster Hussain Ustra.
Story of getting name Ustra
According to media reports, Hussain Sheikh’s transformation into Hussain Ustra started at the age of just 16. Hussain, who was in bad company, had a fight with a boy. In anger, he attacked the boy with the razor he was keeping with such precision that it tore his body from the shoulder down. When the injured boy was taken to the hospital, the doctors were stunned to see the cleanliness of the wound. He said that only a professional surgeon can make such a precise cut. After this incident, he became famous in the entire area as Hussain Ustra and gradually he formed his own gang.
weakness and dreadful end
Hussain Ustra’s biggest weakness was women. He had many girlfriends and he had an unbreakable rule that whenever he went to meet any of his girlfriends, he would not keep a bodyguard with him. Underworld don Chhota Shakeel came to know about this habit of his. Shakeel laid a honey trap to eliminate Hussain and sent a woman to him. Soon that woman became close to Hussain. One day, as per the plan, the woman called Hussain to Nagpada to meet him.
As usual, Hussain reached there without any security and was sitting carefree at his girlfriend’s house. Just then Chhota Shakeel reached there with his henchmen. Hussain did not even get a chance to recover or take out his gun and Chhota Shakeel shot him dead. In this way, due to one of his weaknesses, this famous gangster of Mumbai met his end.
dawood ibrahim
Who was Ashraf and what was his enmity with Dawood?
A woman lived in Mumbai. Name was Ashraf Khan. His life was going great. Husband Mahmood worked in Gulf, Ashraf had similar information. He came to know that Mahmood was coming to Mumbai. She reached the airport. The husband was in front when he was shot and he collapsed. With this Ashraf’s entire life changed. Later she came to know that her husband Mehmood worked for underworld don Dawood Ibrahim. And Dawood had informed about his killing in the encounter.
After this incident, Ashraf started burning with the fire of revenge and for this purpose she met Hussain Ustra. Hussain, who was thirty-six years older than Dawood, at first laughed at Ashraf’s intentions, but seeing his determination, he trained Ashraf in martial arts and weapons handling. A deep friendship and strategic partnership developed between the two, which laid the foundation for Ashraf’s campaign against Dawood.
Sapna Didi becomes Ashraf in the fire of revenge
To satisfy his rivalry with Dawood, Ashraf changed his identity and took the new name Sapna Didi. He realized that his old identity was hindering his mission. Under Hussain’s guidance, she started spying on Dawood’s dark empires of drugs and betting and became a trusted informer of the police. Sapna not only started looting Dawood’s smuggled goods but also made bold plans to eliminate him. This journey that started with Hussain turned into a dangerous rivalry that directly challenged Dawood’s supremacy, which shook the underworld equations of Mumbai.
Underworld used to decide a lot
According to media reports, Hussain Shaikh alias Hussain Ustra was a popular name in the Mumbai underworld. He was also said to be a staunch enemy of notorious don Dawood Ibrahim. We all know that in the 1980s, many criminals including Dawood Ibrahim were famous in Mumbai. Right from recovery from businessmen and film makers, many things were decided on his instructions. This mafia had also become a problem for the police. In such a situation, there was someone who was present in Mumbai with direct enmity with Dawood. Because of this, the fact that how audacious Hussain Sheikh or Hussain Ustra must have been becomes important.
Shahid Kapoor in O Romeo.
Why the ruckus over legal notice?
Sanobar Sheikh, daughter of gangster Hussain Ustra, has sent a legal notice to the film makers. The notice claims that the film may contain an inaccurate, negative portrayal of his father, which will harm the family’s reputation. Media reports say that Sanobar has reportedly demanded a compensation of Rs 2 crore and also requested that the release of the film be stopped until his objections are resolved. The producer of the film is Sajid Nadiadwala and the direction is by Vishal Bhardwaj. There is also a report that the filmmakers have said that Shahid’s character has nothing to do with Hussain Ustra. The film should be seen as fiction, crime drama, that is, there is a legal dispute on the line of inspired versus straight biopic.
The film gave birth to a new debate
Today, when a project like the film O Romeo is in the news, the debate again comes to the fore that how far can cinema go by taking inspiration from true events? Audiences often consider such films to be true imitations of real characters, while film-makers sometimes call them mere inspiration or background. It is in this gap that controversy arises, because for the family it becomes a question of prestige and memory, and for the makers, of freedom of creative expression and storytelling. It will be interesting to see in the future in which direction this controversy goes. Is there a legal solution, are there any disclaimers or changes in the film, or do the makers stick to their word. At present, it is clear that the name of Hussain Ustra, which once resonated in the underworld stories of Mumbai, is once again standing at the intersection of pop-culture and legal headlines.
There is a long list of films inspired by Mumbai underworld.
Whatever may be the truth about Shahid’s film O Romeo, many films have been made inspired by underworld stories. Films will continue to be made in future also. Dozens of films like Film Company, Black Friday, Once Upon a Time in Mumbai, Haseena Parkar, D Company, Shoot Out at Badala, Shoot Out at Lokhandwala have been made and will continue to be made, which are inspired by the life of some criminal or gangster. This trend is not going to stop because the general public shows interest in crime series and films.
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