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Director Ramesh Sippy’s grand follow-up to Sholay, the film Shaan, united the hit Deewaar pair of Amitabh Bachchan and Shashi Kapoor. The film was written by Sholay’s Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar, but it failed to live up to expectations. Sippy took a third bite of the apple some years later, with the film Shakti. Not only was it written by Salim-Javed, it brought together Amitabh and Dilip Kumar. Shakti was a high-profile project, but it was marred by a curious incident that not many might remember. One of the film’s producers, Mushir Alam, was kidnapped in broad daylight by the Pathan mafia. The police were able to identify and apprehend the kidnappers thanks to crucial details that Mushir had memorised, such as seeing a poster of Sholay through a blindfold.
Details of the kidnapping were shared by noted crime journalist S Hussain Zaidi on his YouTube channel, and in the memoirs of Isaque Bagwan, a Mumbai police officer who worked in the crime branch at the time, and participated in the investigation. Zaidi said that Mushir was on his way to work when a white Ambassador car pulled up next to him, and three men stepped out with weapons. They grabbed Mushir and shoved him into the Ambassador. A blindfold was put on his eyes. Mushir had the presence of mind to take note of details, like seeing a poster of Sholay (which was still running in theatres seven years after its release), and noting that the stairs that he was instructed to climb were wooden. He also noted hearing the voice of children reading the Quran in chorus. These details would help the police identify and track down the kidnappers later.
Mushir’s blindfold was taken off, and he was told that he’d need to pay Rs 20 lakh as ransom. He called up an aide, who arranged for nearly Rs 3 lakh. The money was exchanged, and Mushir was let go at an intersection. The story, Zaidi said, was sensational. How could someone with such major connections be kidnapped in broad daylight? While Mushir had resolved to move on with his life, Dilip Kumar insisted that the matter be investigated.
In his book, Isaque Bagwan wrote, “On 24 September 1982, a constable informed us about the arrival of thespian Dilip Kumar at the commissioner’s office. We thought that such a famous actor must have come to see the commissioner for the renewal of his gun licence or some other security matter. But that was not the case.” He added, “When we reached the commissioner’s office, we saw Dilip Kumar sitting with two other people. Commissioner Ribeiro said, ‘This is Mr Mushir and Mr Riaz.’”
Mushir narrated his ordeal in detail to the police. Bagwan asked Mushir some critical questions, about the time it took for them to drive to their destination from Haji Ali, about the number of stairs he was asked to climb, about the smells and sights he remembered. Luckily, Mushir did. Bagwan deduced that the building Mushir was taken to must be in the Nagpada area. Upon reaching the location, he discovered the room that Mushir had described, and asked the crowd that had gathered there who the room belongs to. “Sir, this is the inquiry room of the Amirzada–Alamzeb gang,” they told him. Having identified the kidnappers, the police got to business and tracked them down. They discovered that the plot was hatched with an insider who worked with Mushir, and that the gang’s efforts to murder Dawood Ibrahim had depleted their resources.
“Once the whole picture was taken into consideration, we realized that all attempts to kill Dawood had taken a heavy toll on the financial resources of the gang. They desperately needed funds, which is why they had forced Ahmed Sayyad Khan to identify rich targets in the film industry, who in turn led them to Mushir,” Bagwan concluded.
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