Nettala Muthappa Rai Derla (known as Muthappa Rai (M. R)) (died 15 May 2020) was an Indian underworld don, businessman, philanthropist and a social activist based in

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Personal life

Rai was born in Puttur, Karnataka, into a

Tulu Tulu may refer to: People *Derartu Tulu (born 1972), Ethiopian long-distance runner *Walid Yacoubou (born 1997), Togolese footballer nicknamed "Tulu" India *Tulu calendar, traditional solar calendar generally used in the regions of southwest Kar ...

-speaking

Bunt Bunt may refer to: * Bunt (community), an elite social group from Karnataka, India * Bunt (baseball), a batting technique in baseball * Bunt (sail), a part of a ship's sail * Bunt Island, island in Antarctica * The Bunt, nickname of the Bunting ...

family of Nettala Narayana Rai and Susheela Rai. He was married to Rekha and has two sons. His wife Rekha died at Mt Elizabeth Hospital, Singapore in 2013. Rai made his appearance in a

movie ''

Kanchilda Baale ''Kanchilda Baale'' is a Tulu Language Film directed and produced by Raghunath Rai Kumbra. Charithra Hedge from Udupi has acted in the title role Kanchilda Baale. A film showing conflict between superstitions and beliefs of people highlights th ...

'' in 2011. Starting his career as a clerk in

Vijaya Bank Vijaya Bank was a PSU bank which was merged with Bank of Baroda on 1 April 2019 with its head office in Bangalore, Karnataka, India. It was one of the nationalised banks in India. The bank offered a wide range of financial products and service ...

, Muthappa claimed to have accidentally turned to a life of crime in Bengaluru to protect his business — a bar and restaurant — from the onslaught of the underworld in 1980s. He is also the founder of ''Jaya Karnataka'' a not-for-profit organisation that aims at improving the quality of life of the people of Karnataka.

Involvement in crime

In the late 1980s, Rai came in contact with Bengaluru’s underworld and became an overnight sensation after he murdered the then don of Bengaluru, M. P. Jayaraj, in broad daylight in 1990. That murder elevated him to the "post" of a mafia boss and he never looked back. The Karnataka police had issued warrants of arrest against Rai in eight cases under Sections 302 (murder) and 120B (conspiracy) of the

Indian Penal Code The Indian Penal Code (IPC) is the official criminal code of India. It is a comprehensive code intended to cover all substantive aspects of criminal law. The code was drafted on the recommendations of first law commission of India established in ...

, the Arms Act and the Explosive Substances Act. The murder of a realtor, Subbaraju, in January 2001 by hired killers from Mumbai followed a dispute over a prime property in

. In 2002 he was interrogated by the

Central Bureau of Investigation The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the premier investigating agency of India. It operates under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Originally set up to investigate bribery and governmen ...

Research and Analysis Wing The Research and Analysis Wing (abbreviated R&AW; hi, ) is the foreign intelligence agency of India. The agency's primary function is gathering foreign intelligence, counter-terrorism, counter-proliferation, advising Indian policymakers, an ...

, Intelligence Bureau and Karnataka police. Due to lack of substantial information on his career in crime, for allegedly operating extortion rackets, helping property developers, taking possession of land in prime localities and collecting 'protection money' from business houses in Karnataka, through his links with

Dawood Ibrahim Dawood Ibrahim (; born 26 December 1955) is an Indian mafia gangster, drug kingpin, and wanted terrorist from Dongri, Mumbai. He reportedly heads the Indian organised crime syndicate D-Company, which he founded in Mumbai in the 1970s. Ibrahim i ...

, he was later acquitted.

Death

In a press meeting in January 2020, Rai had announced that he was diagnosed with brain cancer. He went on to die from brain cancer on 15 May 2020.

Popular culture

A biopic titled ''

Rai RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana (; commercially styled as Rai since 2000; known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane) is the national public broadcasting company of Italy, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. RAI operates many ter ...

'' on the life of Muthappa Rai is being written and directed by

Ram Gopal Varma Penmetsa Ram Gopal Varma (born 7 April 1962), often referred to by his initials RGV, is an Indian film director, screenwriter and producer, known for his works in Telugu cinema in addition to Bollywood, Hindi, Kannada cinema, Kannada language ...

. It is to be filmed in

Mangalore Mangalore (), officially known as Mangaluru, is a major port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bangalore, the state capital, 20 km north of Karnataka–Ker ...

, Bangalore, Mumbai, Dubai and London.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rai, Muthappa 2020 deaths Tulu people Businesspeople from Bangalore Indian philanthropists Mangaloreans Year of birth missing People from Dakshina Kannada district Deaths from brain tumor Deaths from cancer in India Indian gangsters