Baloch communities and Karachi reporters flagged historical mixing, inaccuracies, and uneasy blending of criminal, ethnic, and political threads.
Praise and Admiration (unexpected, but real)
Despite the ban—and often whispered through piracy—praise cut across borders.
Many Pakistanis lauded the film’s direction, cinematography, action choreography, and world-building.
Older residents said the Lyari recreation—shot in Thailand after extensive research—felt real: the alleys, textures, atmosphere.
Even critics of the politics admitted Akshaye Khanna’s performance as Rahman Dakait had undeniable aura, menace, and chilling control. Scenes went viral for a reason.
Ranveer Singh and supporting turns, including Sanjay Dutt as Chaudhry Aslam, earned grudging respect for elevating a genre often dismissed as shallow propaganda.
The result: no single “Lyari verdict.” Widespread offense at the stereotype, paired with cross-border admiration for technical excellence and acting.
Real Rehman Dakait vs Bollywood Fantasy
Bollywood’s Dhurandhar glamorizes Lyari’s gangster Rehman Dakait as a stylish, dominant “Sher-e-Baloch” don—complete with viral dance scenes, swagger, and audience whistles.
The real Abdul Rehman Baloch (1976/1980–2009) tells a far darker story.
He rose in Lyari amid brutal gang wars involving drugs, extortion, arms, and kidnappings. Crime started early—stabbing at around 13, murders as a teenager. He was widely reported to have murdered his own mother, Khadija, in 1995—shot, strangled, or hung, depending on accounts—with police claiming she was a police informant or linked to rivals. The claim remains debated, but it cemented his feared reputation.
