Bhai146;s brother

Chhota Rajan is my bhau brother. I accept that. But I have a right to live my life independently. I cannot shut everybody8217;s mouths....

Chhota Rajan is my bhau brother. I accept that. But I have a right to live my life independently. I cannot shut everybody8217;s mouths.8217;8217; Behind tall wooden gates of an ageing bungalow in Chembur lingers a policeman fingering a revolver in his holster. The pudgy first-time MLA candidate he8217;s here to protect relaxes on a swing, his privacy guarded by a partition and a garden gate accessible only to select guests screened by his watchful, hovering aides who do nothing else. There is no sign of election campaign activity.

8216;8216;I have no enemies. I don8217;t need security,8217;8217; says Deepak Nikalje 38 softly in Marathi, swinging beside two long, crowded aquariums. His cellphone rings every few minutes.

But the producer of Vaastav 8212; a 1996 gangster film starring Sanjay Dutt 8212; and present RPIA state secretary knows there8217;s no hiding from a very real insecurity.

Brother-turned-hitman and extortionist Rajan now shadows his political ambitions from the underworld. Nikalje admits he is 8216;8216;tired8217;8217; of answering for it.

8216;8216;I have not spoken to bhau for 8-10 months, maybe a year,8217;8217; Nikalje told The Indian Express, when asked about Rajan8217;s TV statements where he was critical of his political fling. 8216;8216;Many political parties have been approaching me, but I thought they would take advantage of me,8217;8217; says Nikalje. A dozen workers amble around the bungalow but they say pamphlets, hoardings and catchy slogans are not ready. His campaign tool is his local network.

Nikalje insists his voters in Chembur here, the joint family property is worth Rs 55 lakh have nothing to fear: 8216;8216;People will not be afraid to vote for me just because I am Rajan8217;s brother.8217;8217;

Elder sister Sunita, a 8216;8216;social worker8217;8217;, does not trust the media. 8216;8216;Everyone is targeting Deepak, a simple man, in the name of Rajan. Not fair,8217;8217; she complains.The Std XI drop-out and producer-turned-politician repeatedly justifies his political gamble for 8216;8216;social work and the ideology of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar8217;8217;.

nbsp;	Long shadow

		nbsp;	8226; Rajendra Sadashiv Nikalje alias Chhota Rajan8217;s crime graph starts in 1974. 8226; He was initiated into crime by Chembur don Rajan Nair alias Bada Rajan 8226; Between 1985-87, Dawood Ibrahim hired Chhota Rajan to kill major rivals 8226; Rajan fled to Dubai around 1988 8226; Rajan fell out with Dawood after the 1993 Mumbai blasts 8226; His empire8217;s monthly turnover is an estimated Rs 1,000 crore 8226; His three brothers, two sisters have no criminal records Story continues below this ad	nbsp;

On July 27, his birthday, his aides organised a blood donation camp. The issues of his yet-to-begin campaign include rehabilitation of Chembur8217;s slum-dwellers and drinking water supply. Brownie points are expected from donations of two ambulances, wheelchairs and stretchers to local hospitals.

After a debate with a party aide, he reluctantly divulges his next film project is Kahur. Profits will go to the police department as charity. 8216;8216;I want to make a film on a Param Vir Chakra winner. My films should have a message,8217;8217; he says. Father of a 12-year-old daughter and six-year-old son, he walks for half-an-hour every morning. 8216;8216;We four brothers struggled to support the family,8217;8217; he says. 8216;8216;But I did not become like Rajan.8217;8217;