Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar has put the spotlight on one of the most violent chapters in Pakistan’s Karachi — the Lyari gang wars. The film explores how these gangs were involved in drug trafficking, extortion, kidnappings and gun violence that once paralysed the region. Recently, BBC News Hindi did a detailed report on Lyari, documenting how residents lived under the constant shadow of fear during the gang wars. Through conversations with locals, the report traces how everyday life was disrupted and how the area has gradually changed following the eradication of organised gangs. During the interactions, Lyari residents spoke about how they lived through those years when they couldn’t even get from one lane to the next one safely, referring to the period as the “dark ages”. They also reflected on how Lyari has transformed over time and shared their reactions to Dhurandhar and its depiction of their hometown. According to the report, Lyari has a population of nearly 10,00,000. It was Karachi’s first working-class area, but in the early 21st century, the rise of criminal …