Who Was Rehman Dakait? The Real-Life Gangster Behind Akshaye Khanna’s Stellar Dhurandhar Role

Akshaye Khanna’s performance as Rehman Dakait in the hit film Dhurandhar is winning widespread praise. He has brought the notorious character to life. But who was the real Rehman Dakait? Find out all the details here.

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The Real Rehman Dakait Was Even More Feared

The character of Rehman Dakait, played by Akshaye Khanna in Dhurandhar, is rooted in a real-life figure who was far more dangerous. His real name was Sardar Abdul Rehman Baloch, a notorious gangster who ruled and terrorized Karachi’s Lyari area for nearly a decade, establishing a feared criminal empire.

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Rehman Dakait’s Early Life and Family Background

According to reports, Rehman Dakait was born in Lyari in 1975. His father, Dad Muhammad, was involved in drug smuggling along with his uncle. In the 1960s, they reportedly had a major rivalry with Lyari’s first infamous gangster, Kala Nag, who was eventually killed in a police encounter in 1967.

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Rise of Violence in His Teens

Rehman Dakait entered the world of crime early, starting as a drug peddler in his teens. At just 13, he stabbed a man. Reports claim that by 15, he killed his own mother for allegedly having an affair with a rival gangster believed to be involved in his father’s murder.

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How He Became “Rehman Dakait”

Incidents like stabbing a man at 13 and killing his mother at 15 turned Sardar Abdul Rehman Baloch into one of Lyari’s most feared criminals. His brutality earned him the name Rehman Dakait, symbolizing a merciless death. The film line “A death by Rehman Dakait is like a butcher’s work” perfectly captures the terror he inspired.

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Rise to Power in Lyari

In the 1990s, Rehman Dakait joined the powerful Haji Lalu gang that dominated Lyari. After Lalu’s arrest in 2001, Rehman took over the reins. Remarkably, at just 21, he led a criminal syndicate involved in extortion, kidnapping, arms smuggling, and drug trafficking, rapidly becoming one of Karachi’s most feared underworld figures.

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Peak of Terror (2001–2009)

From 2001 to 2009, Rehman Dakait emerged as Karachi’s most feared gangster. Alongside his cousin Uzair Baloch and rival-turned-ally Baba Ladla, he ruled Lyari with absolute brutality. Such was the terror he commanded that reports claimed his men even played football with the severed heads of victims on his orders—cementing his reputation as one of the most ruthless underworld figures of his time.

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End of a Bloody Reign

Rehman Dakait, who founded the Peoples’ Aman Committee, was killed in a Karachi police encounter on August 9, 2009. Pakistani politician Zulfiqar Mirza later claimed responsibility for ordering the operation and said he regretted it. Rehman Dakait was just 34 at the time of his death.