Chhota Rajan, the Gangster Who Began by Black-marketing Movie Tickets: 10 Facts

Chhota Rajan's real name is Rajendra Sadashiv Nikalje. Born in Mumbai, he is 55 years old.

Rajan began his career in crime by black marketing movie tickets at Sahakar Cinema in Mumbai's Tilak Nagar in the 70s/80s. He took up black-marketing of film tickets reportedly due to poverty and illiteracy.

Rajan soon graduated from a petty criminal to become the right-hand man of Bada Rajan. In 1983, Bada Rajan was shot dead outside Esplanade Court in South Mumbai.

He then came in contact with underworld don and terror mastermind Dawood Ibrahim, who was an established gold smuggler by early 1980s. Dawood's escape to Dubai in 1984 led Rajan to operate the Dawood faction in Mumbai till 1988, after which he, too, fled to the Gulf city. He later became Dawood's rival.

Chhota Rajan is wanted in India in cases of murder, extortion and smuggling.

Interpol had flagged Chhota Rajan as a wanted man in 1995. He has been on the run since.

The Australian police has said Rajan has been living in that country under another identity and had been in touch with Indian authorities.

The CBI said on its request the Bali police on Sunday arrested a man called Mohan Kumar, an alias used by Chhota Rajan.

In 2000, he made escaped from a hotel in Bangkok where Dawood's men tracked him down and attempted to assassinate him. He escaped through the hotel's roof.

While escaping, Rajan fell and broke his back. He was admitted to a hospital but escaped from there and had not been traced since. Rajan had then reportedly sworn revenge and his gang killed key Dawood man Sharad Shetty in Dubai in 2001.