The similarities between Narcos and Raees are uncanny. And the internet is going bonkers over it. Shah Rukh Khan has even tweeted about it. Narcos, a Netflix production, is about a Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar and his constant struggle with the American drug enforcement agency (DEA) represented by Javier Pena and Steve Murphy. Raees is about Abdul Latif, a don who made his money from selling alcohol illegally in a dry state of Gujarat and his constant struggle with the law enforcement agencies represented by ACP Majmudar (in the film).
Both Escobar and Latif believed that they have been wronged in life and their method of earning money made business sense. Both the principle characters become factors in politics of those days with friends and enemies within the political class.
President Cesar Gaviria took a huge political gamble, often at the cost of innocent human lives, to get Escobar killed. Similarly, BJP used Latif as a poll issue. Once elected, the party ensured he was arrested. Later he was killed in an encounter while trying to escape from Sabarmati prison. Escobar was also killed in an encounter.
Here’s what SRK had tweeted:
https://t.co/GWaY0mmHf1 my favourite show done on Raees dialogues. I like.
— Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) December 10, 2016
There are more similarities. Both Escobar and Latif had attained a Robinhood kind status within their societies. Both indulged in mass violence. Latif is said to have had an understanding with Dawood Ibrahim. Escobar was in touch with the violent left-wing military groups in Columbia who planned bomb blasts near the presidential palace on instruction from Escobar.
We shall know more about how much of the reality has been adapted only after Raees is released.
Also read: Raees beats Sultan. Trailer of Shah Rukh Khan film crosses 12 million views in 24 hours
