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Former Don Muthappa Rai to produce an 'inspiring' film on his life after two failed attempts by other producers in the past

Yesteryear's don and alleged 'D' company member Muthappa Rai, who, after similar attempts in the past, has finally set the ball rolling for a movie to be shot based on his life. "Yes, he has started working for the project," confirmed Prakash Rai, Rai's brother-in-law. "This will be one of his dream ventures. He is keen and has started work on it again after almost two years."

Mafia-turned-mogul: Muthappa Rai. Pic/Scott Carney

The movie will revolve around Muthappa's character, whose journey from Nettana, a remote village in Dakshina Kannada district ends up in the 'D' company. Rai wants to expose the harsh realities of the underworld, besides presenting twists and turns in his life, said Prakash Rai, his brother in law.

"Most of the movie would be dedicated to conveying a message to youngsters, because they are fascinated by the underworld," he added.

"He wants to show how innocents become victims and end up in the underworld, a place where there are no comebacks," added Prakash Rai.  Rai, who produced the Tamil flick 'Tamizh MA', wants to produce this movie himself after two failed attempts by other producers.

"He has talked to four scriptwriters from the Bollywood and Kannada industries," added a source. "A script was made, but finally got rejected, as it didn't meet his expectations. However he has started talks with other writers again."

In good light

Though Muthappa Rai is said to have made up his mind to produce the movie for the first time, similar attempts were made in the past.

While producer Ramu had called Upendra to act in and direct a movie based on Rai in 2003, another producer Dhanraj had made a similar attempt to shoot a movie with actor Darshan in the lead role in 2004. However, the 2003 attempt failed after Muthappa reportedly insisted that the director change the script in order to portray him in good light.

Movies on dons

Deewar (1975): Haji Mastan Nayakan (1987): Varajarajan Mudliyar Parinda (1989): Amar Naik Agneepath (1990): Manya Surve Angaar (1992): Haji Mastan Gangster (2006): Abu Salem

Rai's underworld links

According to the police, his first major strike was the murder of underworld don M P Jairaj. He was accused by the police of killing gangster Oil Kumar. The elimination of these two men made him the leader of the city's crime syndicate. In 1997, in a case of mistaken identity, Rowdy Seena was murdered and Rai was named one of the accused. Again, in 2002, Subbaraju, a builder, was shot dead on Cunningham Road, and Rai was again suspected to be the mastermind behind the killing. The Karnataka police had sought Interpol's assistance in issuing a red corner notice against him. In 2002, Rai was deported from Dubai under the extradition treaty. Rai was acquitted in the Seena and Subbaraju murder cases. And, in 2007, he was also acquitted in other cases too.