Mafia Queens of Mumbai: Women Who Ruled the Ganglands

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I felt a lot about Gangubai too--without any fault of her own what kind of profession she got and the life she led. Kudos to her, reading about Papamani only gives me chills, let alone meeting her alone that too in her own area. Ashraf, aka Sapna, who wanted revenge for her husband's death and decided to take on Dawood Ibrahim. Using a facade of love to abscond with, then sell a naive, rural, young lady into sexual slavery is a criminal act deserving of a harsher punishment than prison can legally provide.

S. Hussain Zaidi's work, both in literature and cinema, continues to captivate audiences with its gritty realism, engaging storytelling, and insights into the complex world of crime and law enforcement in India. I am not stopping yet as this book has made my mind inclined towards reading crime stories and I am going to pick more of his book. Kankana Basu of The Hindu felt, " Mafia Queens, by virtue of its very stark simplicity is a revelation, a rare treat for the discerning lover of crime stories.

Read it to know what it meant for these women to carve a place for themselves in that ugly world of the dons. You might be acquainted with this gangster-cum-politician, if you have watched the Bollywood movie Daddy (2017). For some of these women, this kind of life was circumstantial, while for others, it was their choice.

Tarannum Khan, who worked at the Deepa bar, minted millions through betting on international cricket tournaments. Story of Jenabai was really impressive, Gangubai-the sex worker or 'Kamathipura Ki Amma' and her connection with the gangster Karima Lala as brother-sister and in later days her social works were also good, somewhat like Nalini Jameela (the first sex-worker who wrote her autobiography), but the most awful and heart-rending story in the collection was of Ashraf aka Sapna Didi, a widow whose husband was murdered by Dawood Ibrahim because he wanted to leave his Comapany. Go ahead, pick this up to get your quota of these hardened women who chose to have their way in a world that is not yet ready to accept them. What would they have achieved with their qualities, in a different time, in different circumstances? It was also heartening to read that Gangubai later adopted children from the locality and raised them.But, the most intriguing story is probably about the very powerful Jenabhai, who was closely associated with many underworld dons like Haji Mastan, Varadarajan Mudaliar, Dawood Ibrahim etc, and advised them on various matters and helped in shaping important events in the underworld. Tarannum Khan made millions from her betting on cricket, while Archana Sharma through being a threat to millionaires.

As per Zaidi’s book, born Zainab Darwesh Gandhi, Jenabai was the first mafia queen of the Mumbai underworld. Did you know that the word Mafia is a derivative of a Sicilian adjective, which roughly translates to boldness or bravado. Born on February 28, 1962, in Mumbai, India, Zaidi has left an indelible mark on the literary and cinematic landscapes of India, particularly in the realm of crime and the Mumbai underworld.It seemed ironic to me, because I know very well she was exploiting women through pimping / pandering but she spoke to lead change to the generative factors of serious problems. This mentoring initiative is facilitated through "Blue Salt Media," an imprint in collaboration with Penguin India. But few can claim to be completely disinterested in reading about the underworld or watching movies made around the underworld.