Poisoned perfumes, tapped phones, spies falling into steamy love affairs with their colleagues… In a world of elite espionage, these tactics are par for the course (we assume). In Khufiya, a thriller based on a true story about the underbelly of India’s intelligence community in the late ’90s, a savvy counterterrorism agent is tasked with finding the double-crosser responsible for her lover’s murder. Directed by Vishal Bhardwaj (Maqbool, Haider), the slow burn spy thriller stars Tabu, Ali Fazal, and Wamiqa Gabbi.

When will Khufiya be released?

Stream it now on Netflix.

Where can I find the trailer for Khufiya?

Check it out at the top of this article. 

Who’s in the cast of Khufiya?

• Tabu (Haider) as Krishna Mehra, aka KM, an operative for India’s foreign intelligence agency, Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW)
• Azmeri Haque Badhon (Rehana) as Heena Rehman, aka Octopus, an undercover agent who works for KM
• Ali Fazal (Mirzapur) as Ravi Mohan, a mole that the R&AW is on a mission to out 
• Wamiqa Gabbi (Eclipse) as Charu Mohan, Ravi’s wife 
• Ashish Vidyarthi (Haider) as Jeev, KM’s mentor and R&AW’s director of counterterrorism operations
• Shataf Figar (Dark Chocolate) as Mirza Sahib, aka Brigadier Mirza, an operative for Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency 
• Atul Kulkarni (Laal Singh Chaddha) as Shashank, KM’s ex-husband
• Navnindra Behl (Hotel Salvation) as Ravi’s mother

What happens in Khufiya?

It’s the late ’90s, and relations between India and Pakistan have grown increasingly tense as both fight to establish a government in neighboring Bangladesh ahead of the next election. Pakistan’s ISI and India’s R&AW keep making  attempts to undercut the other, and betrayals between the two agencies run rampant. But there’s another force at work — a traitor — who’s pulling the strings at both intelligence agencies. 

Enter Heena, a R&AW spy known as Octopus, who’s about to kill a powerful ISI puppet named Mirza Sahib. At the last minute, his men thwart the assassination — and Mizra kills Heena instead. When Heena’s boss, Krishna, finds out, she’s furious. Not only was Heena a talented operative, she was also Krishna’s lover. Krishna, committed to avenging Heena’s death, goes on a mission to find the R&AW mole who had Heena killed: Ravi Mohan. Ravi, a dashing man who’s a model husband and a devoted employee, is not who he seems. 

Is Khufiya based on a book?

Yes, it’s based on a book Escape to Nowhere, written by the former Chief of the Counter Espionage Unit of R&AW, Amar Bhushan. 

Is Khufiya based on a true story?

Yes, it’s based on real events. In the early 2000s, a whistleblower at India’s intelligence agency (R&AW) claimed that fellow agent Rabinder Singh was giving defense secrets to the US, threatening to jeopardize relations between the two countries. Bhardwaj’s adapted screenplay reworks the story to portray the whistleblower as a woman. 

Where does Khufiya take place? Where was it filmed?

The film takes place in New Delhi, India, and Dhaka, Bangladesh. It was filmed in Mumbai and New Delhi. 

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