2020 · Series
Special OPS
Neeraj Pandey's Hindi spy thriller in which R&AW officer Himmat Singh, played by Kay Kay Menon, hunts the man he believes planned a string of terror attacks.
Reviewed by Movie Mandala, Sun, 18 Oct, 2026
Where to watch
IndiaAs of 18 October 2026, Special OPS is streaming in India on JioHotstar with a subscription.
- Checked Sun, 18 Oct, 2026 via Airtel Xstream listingOpen ↗
The story
Himmat Singh, a senior officer of India's Research and Analysis Wing, has spotted the same pattern behind a series of terror attacks on the country, starting with the 2001 Parliament attack. He is convinced one mastermind planned them all, but few in the system believe him. For years he has quietly run a team of five agents placed in different countries, each working on part of the trail. As an internal inquiry starts questioning his methods and spending, Himmat and his agents close in on their target. Kay Kay Menon plays Himmat.
Spoiler-free: only the set-up.
Who it suits
Viewers who like intelligence-agency thrillers built around real terror attacks, in the vein of Neeraj Pandey's films, will get the most from it. It is rated U/A 16+ and has shootouts, bombings and terror-attack scenes.
Genres:ThrillerActionWar and patriotic
Curation to help you choose, not a review.
Background
Neeraj Pandey first pitched the idea in 2010 for Star Plus before reviving it in 2019 for Hotstar Specials, produced by his company's Friday Storytellers division. He wrote it with Deepak Kingrani and Benazir Ali Fida and co-directed with Shivam Nair. It draws on nineteen years of real events and recreates the 2001 Parliament attack. The eight-episode first season, filmed in India, Turkey, Jordan, the UAE and Azerbaijan, premiered on Hotstar on 17 March 2020 in seven Indian languages. Its episodes are named after classic Hindi films such as Sholay and Guide.
It won three of its eight nominations at the first Filmfare OTT Awards in December 2020. The prequel Special Ops 1.5: The Himmat Story followed on 12 November 2021. Season 2 premiered on JioHotstar on 18 July 2025, with seven episodes about a cyber threat and Prakash Raj and Tahir Raj Bhasin joining the cast. Koimoi reported 21.6 million views in its first three weeks.
The facts
- Language
- Hindi
- Hindi
- Hindi original
- Genre
- Espionage thriller, Action
- Certificate
- U/A 16+ (JioHotstar rating, as listed on Airtel Xstream Play)
- Director
- Neeraj Pandey and Shivam Nair
- Cast
- Kay Kay Menon, Karan Tacker, Vinay Pathak, Saiyami Kher, Sajjad Delafrooz
Questions people ask
- Where can I watch Special OPS in India?
- As of 18 October 2026, Special OPS is streaming in India on JioHotstar with a subscription.
- Is Special OPS in Hindi?
- Yes. Special OPS is a Hindi-language series.
- Is Special OPS suitable for children?
- Special OPS has a CBFC U/A 16+ (JioHotstar rating, as listed on Airtel Xstream Play) certificate.