Dhurandhar Made Cheel Chowk In Pakistan's Karachi Famous. But That's Not An Eagle

Aditya Dhar's spy thriller Dhurandhar recently made its OTT debut on Netflix. The Ranveer Singh-starrer is predominantly set in the Lyari town of Pakistan's Karachi.    

The film's digital release has now brought attention to Lyari's iconic Cheel Chowk.

Cheel Chowk In Dhurandhar

Lyari's Cheel Chowk features in a key scene in Dhurandhar. Akshaye Khanna's Rehman Dakait brutally kills his father Babu Dakait at the city square which is flanked by a massive bird displayed on top of a big pillar.  

While Lyari's Cheel Chowk features prominently in Dhurandhar, one fascinating fact about it remains widely misunderstood. The iconic "Cheel" statue, on which the square's name is based, is, in fact, a falcon and not a kite. 

History of Cheel Chowk 

In the 1990s, Cheel Chowk or Eagle Square was known as "Ibrahim Chowk". It was named after the person who used to sell grass and other wherewithals for the animals. It was due to his presence at the square that the residents of Lyari named the square after Ibrahim.  

Following the assassination of former Pakistani President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq came to power and imposed martial law. Challenging Zia's dictatorship, opposition parties formed the Movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD) party to reinstate democracy in Pakistan.

Partisans engaged in protests and demonstrations to disrupt commercial activities in key trade centres in Karachi like Ranchor Line, Napier Road, and Lee Market. To gain control, activists seized Ibrahim Square, aiming to sabotage the government's efforts. The people of Lyari, who opposed Zia's regime, supported the MRD's cause and united against the dictatorship. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Abdul Khalique Soomro (@_calledbyabdulkhalique)

How Ibrahim Chowk Became Cheel Chowk? 

After the democracy was finally restored in the late 1990s or early 2000s, the municipal corporation initiated efforts to redecorate Karachi's squares. Recognising the Ibrahim Square history, the authorities attempted to renovate it by building a minaret and placing a falcon statue on top. It was inspired by Pakistan's national poet Allama Iqbal's shaheen (falcon in Urdu). A shaheen or falcon, as propagated by Allama Iqbal, is the metaphorical symbol of an ideal Muslim, hence a Pakistani.  

According to Pakistani daily Dawn, the Baloch locals of Lyari were unacquainted with Allama Iqbal's concept of shaheen. They saw the bird on the minaret and deduced that it was an eagle and started calling this square the eagle's square or Cheel Chowk. Even today, many locals don't know that the statue is actually not an eagle but a falcon.  

Meanwhile, Dhurandhar is trending on Netflix Pakistan despite not getting a theatrical release in the country.  

Also Read | Inside Dhurandhar Director Aditya Dhar And Yami Gautam's Rs 20-Crore Mumbai Home