A film starring actor Alia Bhatt is facing legal trouble after individuals claiming to be family members of the main protagonist, Gangubai Kathiawadi, have objected to her portrayal in the film.
Ganga Harjeevandas Kathiawadi was a native of Gujarat who earned a name for herself as one of Mumbai’s well-known and influential brothel owners in the 50s and 60s.
She is said to have been sold to a brothel owner in Kamathipura by her husband. Kamathipura is one of Mumbai’s oldest and most notorious red light districts.
She gradually ended up operating her own brothel and is known to also have lobbied for the rights of commercial sex workers. There are not many contemporary accounts of Gangubai’s life.
The book “Mafia Queens of Mumbai” by Hussain Zaidi, on which the Alia Bhatt movie is based, dwells on some facets of Gangubai Kathiawadi's life.
Gangubai is said to have been a proponent of the rights of commercial sex workers and apparently lobbied with politicians on this issue. There are however no contemporary to back these claims.
Gangubai is said to have been a proponent of the rights of commercial sex workers and apparently lobbied with politicians on this issue. There are however no contemporary to back these claims.
Gangubai reportedly passed away in the mid 70s and did not have children of her own. There are however several individuals who claim they were adopted by her.
Last March, a court in Mumbai had issued summons to director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and actor Alia Bhatt based on a complaint filed by a man claiming to be Gangubai’s adopted son.