The Godfathers of Bollywood and Their Women

The mafia bosses with their rebellious image find it easy to get them perceived in society as a most potent personification of an anti-hero psyche, an image that draws fresh young recruits to them like moths to a flame. The flamboyance of a quintessential mafia don’s lifestyle, his perceived power, his Robin Hood image has been immortalized in numerous super-hit films like The Godfather in Hollywood, and Dharmatma in Bollywood. Such is the impression these movies create that numerous movie goers get deluded into believing that the mafia organizations are indeed ruled by so-called ‘men of honor’. Young men on look out for a fast track to riches tend to forget that mafia is an association of thieves, murderers, and smugglers who make money through extortion, racketeering, prostitution, gambling, and so on. It is not just the hot-blooded young men, but also the beautiful women who prove vulnerable to the lure of the mafia myth. And if the beautiful woman to lose herself to the love of a monstrous gangster happens to be a popular Bollywood actress, then the story of that romance becomes the stuff of legends - one that can serve as inspiration for myriad Bollywood flicks in times to come.

When actress Monica Bedi was arrested abroad along with the notorious gangster, Abu Salem, the nation was excited, but not too shocked. Instances of Bollywood bimbos falling for this don or that are fairly common. Lacking real talent such actresses depend on powerful dons to buttress their career. The don gets sex and the actress gets - money, power, and plum roles in Bollywood films! Monica made full use of Abu Salem’s heavy influence on Mumbai’s film industry. With Abu’s help she bagged female lead roles in films such as, Suraksha, Jodi Number 1, Pyar Ishq Aur Mohabbat, etc.

But she made the fatal mistake of flaunting too openly her association with Abu Salem and now she cools her heels in a jail. She is doomed to spend her life being known as a gangster’s moll. No matter what she does, no matter where she goes, that tag ‘moll’ will follow her to the grave. One can only wonder how she assesses her life so far, and what sort of regrets she might harbor. Does she hate Abu Salem or is she still filled with gratitude for him? Maybe one day she might decide to pen her memoirs, or give an incisive interview and we will all find what makes Monica tick.

Monica has not been the first Bollywood star to link herself with a don and all indications are that she won’t be the last. There is the case of Mandakini who leapt to instant stardom with Raj Kapoor's ‘Ram Teri Ganga Maili. Subsequently she fell for the biggest gangster of them all, Dawood Ibrahim. It is rumored that she married him and she even has a child with him. Mandakini could have gone places in Bollywood with her beauty and talent but she preferred domestic bliss as a gangster’s moll!

Alas for these women their end is always bad. More often than not they end up on the wrong side of the law. Mandakini’s film career was over the moment her relationship with Dawood came to limelight. She may have gained the affection of a murderous don, but in the process she lost the love and admiration of millions of her fans. Of what use has been the gold, pearls, emeralds, diamonds and success in filmdom that Salem may have showered on Monica! She now ekes out a living in a tiny jail cell with little hope of getting freed anytime soon.