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<p data-start="296" data-end="623"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Akshaye Khanna&rsquo;s character in <em data-start="326" data-end="338">Dhurandhar</em> enters the frame with deliberate drama &mdash; tailored Pathan suits, dark blazers, swelling background music and a calculated stillness that signals power. His presence has drawn widespread attention, with many viewers even calling it more commanding than that of lead actor Ranveer Singh.</span></p>
<p data-start="625" data-end="717"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">But the real-life figure behind the character was never defined by style or cinematic flair.</span></p>
<p data-start="719" data-end="1092"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Sardar Abdul Rehman Baloch, better known as Rehman Dakait, ruled through fear. His rise and fall were marked by extreme violence, political entanglements and a legacy that continues to haunt Karachi&rsquo;s Lyari neighbourhood. Far removed from the choreographed menace of cinema, his life reflected the slow collapse of civic order in one of Pakistan&rsquo;s most troubled localities.</span></p>
<p data-start="1094" data-end="1277"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;"><em data-start="1094" data-end="1106">Dhurandhar</em> may have introduced his name to Indian audiences, but in Lyari, Rehman Dakait remains a grim reminder of an era when crime, politics and law enforcement blurred into one.</span></p>
<h3 data-start="1279" data-end="1321"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Lyari: The environment that shaped him</span></h3>
<p data-start="1323" data-end="1636"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Rehman Dakait was born and raised in Lyari, one of Karachi&rsquo;s oldest neighbourhoods. Long plagued by poverty, unemployment and administrative neglect, Lyari evolved into a battleground for rival gangs who exercised control over daily life &mdash; determining when markets opened, schools functioned or streets shut down.</span></p>
<p data-start="1638" data-end="1994"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">With a population running into several lakhs, the area became fertile ground for organised crime. Years of violent turf wars claimed hundreds of lives and entrenched a culture of fear. Ironically, the name &ldquo;Lyari&rdquo; is believed to originate from <em data-start="1882" data-end="1888">lyar</em>, a tree associated with graveyards &mdash; a grim parallel to the bloodshed the area would witness for decades.</span></p>
<p data-start="1996" data-end="2064"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">It was within this violent landscape that Rehman Dakait came of age.</span></p>
<h3 data-start="2066" data-end="2106"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Early life and descent into violence</span></h3>
<p data-start="2108" data-end="2298"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Born in 1980 to Muhammad, a drug smuggler, and Khadija Bibi, Rehman was exposed to crime early in life. By his teenage years, he was allegedly involved in drug peddling and violent offences.</span></p>
<p data-start="2300" data-end="2677"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Reports claim that at just 13, he stabbed a man &mdash; an incident often cited as the beginning of his criminal trajectory. One of the most disturbing allegations associated with him is the claim that he murdered his own mother at the age of 15 over her alleged links to a rival gang. Though never conclusively proven, the claim added to the fear and notoriety surrounding his name.</span></p>
<p data-start="2679" data-end="2890"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">His extreme brutality earned him the title &ldquo;Dakait&rdquo; &mdash; dacoit &mdash; a reputation echoed in <em data-start="2765" data-end="2777">Dhurandhar</em>, where the character chillingly declares that deaths delivered by Rehman Dakait were meant to be painfully slow.</span></p>
<h3 data-start="2892" data-end="2922"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Building a kingdom of fear</span></h3>
<p data-start="2924" data-end="3143"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">In the late 1990s, Rehman joined the gang led by Haji Laloo. After Laloo&rsquo;s arrest in 2001, Rehman assumed command and quickly consolidated power. By his early twenties, he had emerged as Lyari&rsquo;s most feared gang leader.</span></p>
<p data-start="3145" data-end="3467"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">With close associates like Uzair Baloch and Baba Ladla, Rehman expanded operations into extortion, kidnapping, narcotics trafficking and illegal arms trade. Allegations surfaced of extreme acts of violence meant to terrorise rivals and establish dominance, including grotesque displays intended to signal absolute control.</span></p>
<p data-start="3469" data-end="3681"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">For nearly a decade, Lyari was paralysed by gang warfare, particularly clashes between Rehman&rsquo;s group and rival gangs. Entire neighbourhoods were repeatedly caught in the crossfire, bringing daily life to a halt.</span></p>
<h3 data-start="3683" data-end="3725"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Politics and the pursuit of legitimacy</span></h3>
<p data-start="3727" data-end="3923"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">As his influence grew, Rehman Dakait began seeking political legitimacy. Lyari had long been a political stronghold, and photographs emerged showing him in the company of senior political figures.</span></p>
<p data-start="3925" data-end="4145"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Despite official denials, claims persisted that Rehman enjoyed political protection. Observers pointed to a vacuum created by unemployment and neglect, which allowed figures like him to step in as de facto power brokers.</span></p>
<p data-start="4147" data-end="4266"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Young men were allegedly recruited, armed and paid to patrol areas, often without clarity about who their enemies were.</span></p>
<p data-start="4268" data-end="4579"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">By 2008, Rehman attempted to rebrand himself, dropping the &ldquo;Dakait&rdquo; label and using his full name, Abdul Rehman Baloch, while emphasising his tribal identity. He reconciled with rivals and helped form the People&rsquo;s Aman Committee, which publicly positioned itself as a peace and development initiative for Lyari.</span></p>
<p data-start="4581" data-end="4733"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">There were even murmurs of electoral ambitions, and armed men linked to his network were reportedly seen providing security to senior political leaders.</span></p>
<h3 data-start="4735" data-end="4758"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">A controversial end</span></h3>
<p data-start="4760" data-end="4985"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Rehman Dakait&rsquo;s political aspirations ended abruptly in August 2009 when he was killed in a police encounter. Authorities maintained that he died during a shootout, but the circumstances surrounding his death remain disputed.</span></p>
<p data-start="4987" data-end="5161"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Questions were raised over autopsy findings that suggested he was shot from close range. Claims also emerged that peace negotiations were underway at the time of his killing.</span></p>
<p data-start="5163" data-end="5453"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Multiple theories continue to circulate &mdash; from fears that Rehman was becoming too powerful, to allegations involving arms deals and internal betrayals. All such claims were officially denied, and political groups later distanced themselves from him and the organisations linked to his rise.</span></p>
<h3 data-start="5455" data-end="5485"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">A legacy that outlived him</span></h3>
<p data-start="5487" data-end="5691"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">Rehman Dakait died at 29, but his shadow continues to loom large over Lyari. His life remains etched into the collective memory of the neighbourhood as a symbol of unchecked violence and systemic failure.</span></p>
<p data-start="5693" data-end="6017" data-is-last-node="" data-is-only-node=""><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: georgia, palatino, serif;">With <em data-start="5698" data-end="5710">Dhurandhar</em>, that legacy has now crossed borders, reshaped for the big screen. While Akshaye Khanna&rsquo;s portrayal has earned praise for its intensity and restraint, many who remember the real Rehman Dakait argue that the reality was far darker &mdash; and far more disturbing &mdash; than any cinematic adaptation can fully capture.</span></p>
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Akshaye Khanna portrays Rehman Baloch, also known as Rehman Dakait

The violent rise and fall of the Lyari gangster who inspired Akshaye Khanna’s role

Rehman Dakait: The Real Man Behind Dhurandhar

The violent rise and fall of the Lyari gangster who inspired Akshaye Khanna’s role

December 22, 2025 | 17:58 IST