Estonian-born author Meelis Lao is a man the era still argues about—freedom fighter, spy, or mafioso, depending on who’s telling the story. His life unfolded in the shadow zone where a newborn state, intelligence networks, politics, and the criminal underworld collided after the Soviet collapse—and where survival was never guaranteed, through 7 assassination attempts.

His best-selling memoir, The Eastern Godfather, is a raw, cinematic account of the “glamorous, dirty and gangster-ridden” 1990s in Estonia, an insider story that pulls readers into the deals, pressure, and moral gray zones of the time—shaped by his life operating between Estonia and Russia, where law dissolved faster than authority could replace it, and where trust was lethal and order had to be enforced by those willing to stand in the open.

Today, Meelis continues to tell the story behind the headlines through new writing, public appearances, and deeper conversations—and his journey is now moving from page to screen, with a feature film in development.