The web series, IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack, directed by Anubhav Sinha, released on Netflix on August 29, and it has been receiving rave reviews from the audience and critics alike. It is based on the true events of 1999 when a Delhi-bound India Airlines flight was hijacked by a Pakistani terror group and was forced to land in Kandahar, Afghanistan.
The show is adapted from the book Flight Into Fear, which has been penned by the pilot of the hijacked flight Devi Sharan and journalist Srinjoy Chowdhury.
Who plays what in IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack?
IC-814: The Kandahar Hijack is headlined by actor Vijay Varma, who plays Sharan Dev, the 37-year-old pilot of the hijacked flight.
Pankaj Kapur plays the role of Minister of External Affairs, Jaswant Singh, however, his name has been changed to Vijaybhan Singh in the show. Naseeruddin Shah plays Vinay Kaul, the cabinet secretary of India and the head of India’s Crisis Management Group, while Arvind Swamy took on the role of DRS, the joint secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs.
Veteran actor Manoj Pahwa plays the role of Mukul Mohan, Additional Director of Intelligence Bureau. Kumud Mishra essays the role of Ranjan Mishra, Joint Secretary of RAW. Kanwaljit Singh plays the role of the director of Intelligence Bureau in the show.
Patralekhaa plays the role of an air hostess on board the hijacked flight, while Dia Mirza plays Editor of Indian Headlines, Shalini Chandra.
IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack controversy
As the show released online, a section of viewers slammed the makers for showing the names of the hijackers as 'Bhola' and 'Shankar'. The real names of the hijackers were revealed to be Ibrahim Athar, Shahid Akhtar Sayed, Sunny Ahmed Qazi, Zahoor Mistry, and Shakir.
However, several X users stated that the hijackers used the names 'Bhola' and 'Shankar' as their code names, and that the makers had not distorted the facts.
