Daddy trailer: Arjun Rampal transforms into dreaded don Arun Gawli of Dagdi Chawl

While the teaser for Arjun Rampal's turn as the gangster Arun Gawli arrived in December last year, it has been under wraps since then. Finally, the trailer for the film was released yesterday. Featuring Arjun Rampal as the gangster-turned-MLA, Daddy looks edgy, dark, and filled with nuggets of the 1970s charm that make it a film to watch out for.

The trailer provides some context to the rise of Gawli as a gangster by explaining the atmosphere of Mumbai in the 1970s. The edgy visuals, and the sinister lighting of the entire trailer adds to its gristly appeal. Rampal looks transformed as Arun Gawli, complete with long hair and a beard. The trailer also offers some insight into the battles, and a glimpse and miss appearance of a Dawood Ibrahim like profile in the background. The trailer is fast paced, and tracks the life of Gawli from his rise as a young gangster to the king of the impenetrable Dagdi Chawl. Rampal looks at home as the gangster, and has even caught up the Marathi accent quite well.

The only risk lies in portraying Gawli as a hero, rather than the crime lord he was. In an earlier interaction with PTI news agency, Rampal had mentioned that 'is not an image-building exercise and steers clear of glorifying anything that is undesirable.' However, the trailer's posturing of Gawli as a family man turning to crime to survive in a brutal world paints a different picture. The tagline 'The only man who did not run' also raises questions to this end.

Ashim Ahluwalia, who directed the critically acclaimed Miss Lovely (2012), returns with another dark, crime based thriller. Daddy is produced by Arjun Rampal and Rutvij Patel. The film is set to release theatrically on 21 July. 

Watch the trailer here: