He was called the Messiah of Tamils in Mumbai, who was made the mafia of Mayanagari by underworld don Haji Mastan himself. He emerged as the most effective and robust gangster of Mumbai in the 1970s. His name turned into Varadarajan Mudaliar.
Initially, Varadarajan worked as a porter in Mumbai, then later he turned to a life of crime. With the help of Haji Mastan, he dominated half of of Mumbai for about decades. Varadarajan Mudaliar was born in 1926 into a poor family in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu. He could not even study properly. When he grew up, Varadarajan started looking for ways to progress. Varadarajan was fed up with doing small jobs. He was restless to become rich.
How did Varadarajan enter the world of crime
In the early 1960s, Varadarajan left his home and reached Mumbai. When he did not get any good work in Mumbai, he started working as a porter at VT station. Varadarajan used to feed the poor at the dargah of Baba Bismillah Shah near the station. It was from there that his luck shone. One day at the station, he met some people who were involved in illegal liquor business. For the sake of money, he entered this business. It was from here that he entered the world of crime. And then the people of Mumbai started knowing him by the name of Varadabhai.
How did Varadarajan meet underworld don Haji Mastan
In those days, Haji Mastan and Karim Lala ruled Mumbai. Varadarajan himself used to smuggle liquor as a henchman. But after some time, he started doing his own business. People from the Tamil community living in Mumbai started joining him. Varadarajan was expanding his business.
But he could not do this work without Haji Mastan’s consent. Then one day he met Mumbai’s biggest smuggler and underworld don Haji Mastan. Haji Mastan took Varadarajan with him.
This is how Varadarajan’s crime business grew
Haji Mastan ruled over Bombay Port. He allowed Varadarajan to work at the port. His business of stealing goods coming to Mumbai port gradually grew.
During this time, Haji Mastan introduced him to Karim Lala. Later, he also started drug smuggling and land grabbing. In a few years, Varadabhai established himself in Mumbai. He started doing everything from contract killing to getting land vacated and drug smuggling.
In the seventies, the biggest underworld don Haji Mastan divided the areas of Mumbai. He gave the responsibility of East and North Mumbai to Varadarajan Mudaliar. Karim Lala used to look after all the work of South and Central Mumbai. Haji Mastan himself started looking after the cases related to smuggling and illegal construction. Varadarajan had become a big name in Mumbai. His name was famous in a big area.
Tamils of Mumbai started considering him as Messiah
Varadarajan’s law was prevalent in Tamil populated areas of Mumbai. He used to settle all the matters of the people. Tamils living in large numbers in Matunga and Dharavi areas used to support him. He also used to help the poor and the needy. Tamils of Mumbai started considering him as Messiah. It is said that even the police used to avoid going to his area. And if they ever went, then they used to go after taking permission from Varada Bhai.
Why did Varadarajan have to leave Mumbai
Slowly, Haji Mastan, Karim Lala and Varadarajan started ruling over the whole of Mumbai. But then in the eighties, Varadarajan came under the target of a sharp police officer, Y.C. Pawar. Pawar gradually killed many people of the Varadarajan gang. Varadarajan tried very hard to get Pawar on his side. He even offered a huge amount to Pawar. But it no longer worked out. When the situation worsened, Varadarajan left Mumbai and went again to Chennai.
What was Don Varadarajan’s last wish?
On 2 January 1988, Varadarajan Mudaliar died of a heart attack in Chennai. According to his ultimate want, underworld don Haji Mastan delivered his frame to Mumbai for cremation in a chartered aircraft of Indian Airlines. When Varadarajan’s body reached Mumbai, the entire Dharavi, Matunga, and Sion Koliwada area flocked to see him for the last time. Thousands of people attended Varadabhai’s funeral.
These films were made on Varadarajan’s life
Many Bollywood films were made on Varadarajan’s life. In 1987, Mani Ratnam made a Tamil film named Nayagan on the life of Varadarajan. Then in 1988, Vinod Khanna played the character of Varadarajan in the Hindi film Dayavan. A man or woman within the 1991 Malayalam movie Abhimanyu become additionally based on Varadarajan. Amitabh Bachchan once discovered that he had spoken some dialogues in Varadarajan’s fashion inside the movie Agneepath. In the 2013 Tamil film ‘Thalaivaa’, the individual named Sathyaraj changed into additionally primarily based on Varadarajan. Mithun Chakraborty also performed the character of Varadarajan inside the 2015 Tamil film ‘Yagavarainam Na Kakka’.
