The Dhurandhar trailer starring Ranveer Singh has been getting overwhelmingly positive reviews, with people commending the makers for getting the right balance, the story being mysterious without revealing too much about it.
Although the teaser has made the audience wonder what the movie is actually all about, we have gotten to know what real-life incident the movie is based on.
Dhurandhar has allegedly given his cues based on the Operation Lyari, one of the longest-running covert missions of Pakistan. It was a massive operation that was carried out by Pakistani intelligence agencies between 2012 and 2023 and involved the infiltration and breaking of a strong gang network that was functioning in and around Karachi.
In a period of over ten years, law enforcers monitored and infiltrated the criminal gang before finally bringing it down.
RANVEER SINGH – JIO STUDIOS – ADITYA DHAR: ‘DHURANDHAR’ TRAILER UNLEASHED… #JioStudios and #NationalAward-winning director #AdityaDhar have unveiled the #DhurandharTrailer… A power-packed, fiery, and impactful glimpse indeed!#Dhurandhar is set to release on 5 Dec 2025… pic.twitter.com/7JkS4x60eE
— taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) November 18, 2025
What was Operation Lyari?
Operation Lyari was one of the oldest and densely populated parts of Karachi, and long time a centre of organised crime, political violence, drug trafficking, and gang war.
Organised crimes were led by Rehman Dakait and his successor, Uzair Jan Baloch, who used fronts such as the People Aman Committee (PAC) to influence them beyond the traditional police force. The gangs were highly equipped with weapons and police operation was very risky.
The operation was conducted in several phases, with the 2012 operation also being conducted by the Sindh Police and an encounters specialist Chaudhry Asla,m who experienced strong resistance and loss of life that led to failure.
In a more intense and prolonged initiative, the federal paramilitary Pakistan Rangers were fighting against the established criminal networks between 2013-2014. A clandestine operation by the intelligence agencies totally neutralised the syndicate in a decade-long operation.
The operation resulted in a tremendous reduction of crime in the region and Karachi, in general. It was even rated as one of the most dangerous cities in the world. Rehman Dakait was killed in a police operation in 2009 and Uzair Jan Baloch was arrested in late 2014 in Dubai by Interpol. He is locked up at Karachi Central Jail. In 2017, a shootout took place killing Baba Ladla.
Is Ranveer Singh playing Major Mohit Sharma in Dhurandhar?
For the uninitiated, Major Mohit Sharma was a high-profile officer in the 1 PARA of the Indian Army. He was born in Rohtak, Haryana and graduated with the National Defence Academy (NDA) and subsequently Indian Military Academy (IMA).
He was famous with his unsurpassed courage, fearlessness and command. According to the speculations of the same, the role of Mohit Sharma could be filled by Ranveer Singh in the film, Dhurandhar which is yet to be confirmed officially.
” If Courage had a Face “
Major Mohit Sharma
Ashok Chakra(P),Sena Medal
1 PARA (SF)#IndianArmy 🇮🇳 #tuesday pic.twitter.com/ToRNYBEXVA— Desert Scorpion🦂🇮🇳 (@TigerCharlii) October 14, 2025
Mohit Sharma is the one who is known by his courage in a crucial covert operation that occurred in 2004. The mission was carried out in Shopian, 50 km south of Kashmir and according to the news, at that period, Major Sharma assumed the name of Iftikhar Bhatt and joined the Islamist terrorist group, Hizbul Mujahideen.
He is said to have transformed his whole thinking with long hair and beard and in the name of Iftikhar Bhatt and greeted the terrorists, telling them he wanted to punish the Indian Army that killed his brother.
The terrorists were convinced of his invented tale and began collaborating with him. He, too, as he remained with them, got to know about their networks and their functioning.
After it was gently known that the group comprised of a slightly known Iftikhar Bhatt who was actually Major Mohit Sharma, he was attacked, and in the process, he managed to eliminate two terrorists, Abu Torara and Abu Sabzar.
After this, he was sent on another mission where he was martyred. The operation was carried out way back in 2009 in the Kupwara District in North Kashmir.
A bullet struck him, but even being in that condition he managed to kill four terrorists. In 2009, he was honored with the Ashoka Chakra posthumously due to his contribution in the field and service to the country.
The real-life character might have drawn inspiration for Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar but it is yet to be confirmed whether it is based on Major Mohit Sharma.
Remembering Major Mohit Sharma, Ashoka Chakra (P), Sena Medal and other operators from 1 Para SF who got KIA fighting in Haphruda today
May Bajrangbali bless you all brave warriors 🙏 pic.twitter.com/pMbt5Z6MZP
— ghatak (@Neetivaan) March 21, 2025
Cast Revealed: Who Is Playing Whom in Dhurandhar?
The trailer then introduces the main characters of the film in the form of Arjun Rampal as Major Iqbal, The Angel Of Death, R. Madhavan as Indian Intelligence Expert Ajay Sanyal, The Chariot Of Karma and Akshay Khanna as Rehman Dkait, The Apex Predator and Sanjay Dutt as Chaudhary Aslam, The Jinn.
Rehman Dakait and Chaudhary Aslam were actual Pakistani mafia, and Major Iqbal is an ISI officer who took an important part in mumbai 26/11 attacks. In Dhurandhar, Ranveer Singh is rumored to give a character based on Major Mohit Sharma, one of the most decorated Special Forces officers in the Indian military, serving in the highly classified 1 st Para SF, who infiltrated Pakistani militant networks.
In the meantime, the role of R. Madhavan will be heavily based on NSA Ajit Doval, the mastermind behind many of the most significant covert operations and the most dangerous of surgical procedures of India.
Look at the actors and the characters who they are playing in Dhurandhar:
Though there is no proven fact of R&AW or any Indian intelligence agency being involved in Operation Lyari, the interesting question that still exists would be why and how the Indian agents would be deployed within Pakistan as portrayed in the movie.
About Dhurandhar
Directed by the director of Uri: The Surgical Strike, Aditya Dhar, Dhurandhar is a film with Ranveer Singh, Arjun Rampal, Akshaye Khanna, Sanjay Dutt, R. Madhavan and Sara Arjun as the main cast.
Dhurandhar will be released in two parts, the first part will be released on December 5, and the second part will be released in the summer 2026.
