Sundar Shaekhar, the foster son of the late underworld don, Haji Mastan Mirza, has sent a notice to actor Rajinikanth. In the notice, Shaekhar has warned the actor that he would be forced to initiate legal proceedings if Mirza were to be portrayed as a smuggler and a don in Rajinikanth's upcoming film.
The letter comes in the wake of news reports suggesting that the Tamil superstar is planning to play Mirza in an upcoming biopic.
In a two page letter, a copy of which was made available to the media, Sundar said that he learned from a newspaper report that Rajinikanth and director Ranjith were make a biopic on his late godfather. Pa Ranjith collaborated with the superstar in the recent Kabali (2016).
Sundar claimed that in the film, the actor and the director were planning to depict his godfather, 'a well known national political leader', as a smuggler and an underworld don.
Pointing out that his godfather had never been convicted by any court of law in any case pertaining to smuggling or to the underworld, Sundar said calling Haji Mastan Mirza as a smuggler and underworld don was highly defamatory.
Stating that he had been with his godfather from the time he was a child, Sundar said that although his godfather raised him as his own son, Mirza never forced him to change his religion.
"If you are really interested in making a film on the lifestyle of late Shri Haji Mastan Mirza, then I shall provide you his real life story. Even I am interested in making a biopic on my godfather as I am a producer," Sundar said.
He warned the actor saying, "I further state that there is a huge political party behind him and all party workers are in a state of anger at the misrepresentation of late Shri Haji Mastan Mirza as a smuggler or underworld don, and if any such attempt is made by you to produce any such film, I shall be constrained to adopt legal proceedings. It is needless to say that the same shall be entirely at your risk as to costs and consequences, which please note."
Haji Mastan Mirza was a renowned smuggler, and allegedly ruled the Mumbai underworld between 1960 and 1980. Mastan has already been the inspiration for Amitabh Bachchan in Deewaar (1975), and Ajay Devgn in Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai (2010).