Rani as Dawood’s sister?
Ankur Pathak (MUMBAI MIRROR; October 16, 2014)

Apoorva Lakhia, who has long expressed a desire to direct a feature film on the life of Haseena Parkar, Dawood Ibrahim's younger sister and aide, has finally locked his screenplay.

Haseena's name first came to prominence after her husband Ismail Parkar, was gunned down by members of the Arun Gawli gang in 1991. His murderers were then shot down by Dawood's lieutenants in the infamous J.J. Hospital shootout. Haseena then moved into an apartment in Nagpada and soon became the "godmother" of the area. She passed away in a Dongri hospital on July 4, this year, following a massive heart attack.

Mirror has it that Lakhia, whose film, simply titled Haseena, is expected to go on floors by November, is in advanced talks with Rani Mukerji to essay the role.

A source close to the filmmaker said, "Till late last year, Apoorva was in touch with Haseena and her family. He wants to ensure that every detail is right. He himself spent a lot of time with Haseena to understand the complexities of her life."

Explaining the director's choice of Rani, the source added, "Apoorva believes that Rani will do complete justice to the role. She can pull off the part with confidence and aplomb, which is why he zeroed down on her."

The actress, who hasn't done a biopic yet, has shown interest in the project and is even considering the idea of putting on weight to ensure she resembles Haseena.

Apoorva is also planning workshops for his actors, the lead actress in particular, so that she can learn her distinctive mannerisms right.

While Rani Mukerji remained unavailable for comment, Apoorva Lakhia chose not to respond to our calls or text messages.