Ranveer Singh's film, 'Dhurandhar' is streaming now on Netflix. Amid that, read on to know all the factual and fictional elements of the crime thriller movie.
Aditya Dhar’s action film, Dhurandhar, starring Ranveer Singh and Akshaye Khanna is generating a lot of buzz on social media. The film that hit the silver screen on December 5, 2025, is still roaring high at the box office. However, now that the much-loved film of 2025 is out on the OTT giant, Netflix, read on to know the real-life inspiration behind the movie and the fictional elements that were added by the director.
The film, Dhurandhar, directed by Aditya Dhar begins with a disclaimer that it is a fictional movie; however a few incidents are inspired by real-life. For those who do not know, multiple events that were spoken about in Dhurandhar took place in real-life as well, including the 1999 Indian Airlines Flight IC-814 Hijack. The flight was hijacked in December 1999, soon after its takeoff from Kathmandu. Reportedly, the hijackers had forced the plane to land in Afghanistan and demanded the release of jailed ter*****ts and money. Reportedly, two passengers had lost their lives as well.
Another attack that happened on December 13, 2001, on India's Parliament acted as a major plot catalyst in Dhurandhar. The ter*****t attack had led to major changes in India's security. Apart from this, Ranveer Singh and Akshaye Khanna starrer also includes real footage from Mumbai attacks, which took place in November 2008. Director, Aditya Dhar cleverly used the events to show the rising tension in the country. It is also worth mentioning that the place, Lyari mentioned in Dhurandhar is a real place located in Karachi, Pakistan.
Apart from events, multiple characters of Dhurandhar were inspired by real life people. Akshaye Khanna, who played the role of ‘Rehman Dakait’ was inspired by a real person. Sardar Abdul Rehman Baloch a.k.a Rehman Dakait was an actual ga*****r in the area of Karachi. Reportedly, he had led multiple crime networks. He died in a police encounter in 2009.
Sanjay Dutt essayed the character of 'SP Chaudhary Aslam', which is inspired by senior police officer, Chaudhry Aslam Khan. He had been part of multiple encounters with criminals. Before the release of Dhurandhar, his wife had raised questions on the character.
R. Madhavan portrays the role of 'Ajay Sanyal' in the movie. If reports are to be believed, his character is loosely inspired by Ajit Doval, who was India’s National Security Advisor. Similarly, Arjun Rampal's character, 'Major Iqbal' is also believed to be inspired by Ilyas Kashmiri. Lastly, before the release of Dhurandhar, actor, Rakesh Bedi had shared that his character is inspired by Pakistani political figures; however one name could not be identified.
While the film, Dhurandhar loosely involves multiple real-life events and characters, the film is largely fictional. The core plot and protagonist of the film are fictional. For the unversed, the crime thriller revolves around a mission, 'Operation Dhurandhar'. However, it is worth mentioning that there is no record of an operation like this. Other than this, the main character, 'Hamza', portrayed by Ranveer Singh is fictional.
Sara Arjun, who plays the role of 'Yalina Jamali' is also said to be a fictional character. Her character was made to bring more depth and layers to the core plot. Apart from these, the personal life of each character is said to be dramatised to make Dhurandhar interesting for the viewers. If reports are to be believed, each event and scene has some fictional element to maintain the drama and intensity of the movie.
The film, Dhurandhar, directed by Aditya Dhar was released on December 5, 2025 and it soon broke records of films like Saiyaara, Pushpa 2, RRR and more. Reportedly, the box office collection of the movie, starring Ranveer Singh and Akshaye Khanna has crossed Rs. 1000 crore. It is worth mentioning that the sequel of the film is all set to release on March 19, 2025. It will clash with Yash's movie, Toxic. For the unversed, the teaser of Dhurandhar 2 was supposed to be shown with Border 2; however, later, Aditya Dhar had clarified that it would take some more time.
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Next Read: Dhurandhar On OTT: Did 'Hamza' Kill Rehman Dakait's Son, Naeem, To Be In His Gang? Fans Are Divided