"We had sought permission from the police for the wedding."
A former underworld don attended his daughter’s wedding on May 8, 2020, in Mumbai.
Arun Gawli attended the ceremony, which was more subdued due to the ongoing lockdown. His daughter Yogita married Marathi actor Akshay Waghmare.
Five members of each family also attended the ceremony.
Gawli was also seen abiding by COVID-19 guidelines by wearing a mask. The wedding was originally meant to take place on March 29, 2020, at a five-star hotel in Mumbai.
Eldest sibling Geeta said: “It was strictly a family affair. Only close family members and some well-wishers were present at the occasion.”
Akshay and Yogita were engaged in December 2019.
Akshay’s family were from Pune, however, the police allowed them to travel to Mumbai for the wedding. The Gawli family had sought permission for the wedding to take place.
Geeta added: “The food was cooked right near the temple and the spread was simple and traditional.”
Prior to his wedding, Akshay said: “We had sought permission from the police for the wedding. It was accepted via email on Tuesday night.
“So we fixed the wedding date for May 8.”
Akshay said that he had known Yogita since 2015. Their families said that they should get married. He went on to say that the couple are happy.
After the wedding meal, the newly married couple left for Pune along with Yogita’s parents.
Both Geeta and Akshay said that there will be a wedding reception but “only after the lockdown is lifted”.
Yogita is the youngest of three children. She runs an NGO in Mumbai while her husband is an actor and the son of legendary Marathi actor Dada Kondke.
Arun Gawli had been serving a prison sentence for the murder of Shiv Sena municipal councillor Kamlakar Jamsandekar.
The underworld don was released on parole on February 27, 2020, for the wedding. After the wedding was postponed, he filed a petition to have it extended. The request was accepted and his parole has been extended until May 20.
Arun Gawli and his brother became involved with India’s underworld in the 1970s when they joined a criminal gang led by Rama Naik and Babu Reshim.
Gawli took over the gang in 1988 after Naik was killed in a police encounter.
He ran the gang’s operations from Dagdi Chawl in Mumbai, also having run-ins with fellow gangster Dawood Ibrahim.
Gawli became a notorious figure and there have been films based on his life.
The Marathi film Daagdi Chaawl was released in 2015 and is mainly based on Gawli’s life.
The 2017 film Daddy is about the gangster-turned-politician and Arjun Rampal played Gawli.
Loading ...