Neeraj Pandey: A universe like ‘Special Ops’ demands scale, visual appeal

Mumbai, Oct 26 Once again, espionage thriller series ‘Special Ops’ has sent the audience spiralling into a frenzy with the release of its prequel’s trailer. Titled, ‘Special Ops 1.5: The Himmat Story’, the prequel has garnered the audience’s attention for its picturesque locations in the trailer.

Locations add a lot of value to the universe of a film or a web series, as they bring alive the story and its characters. Talking about finalizing the right locations, director Neeraj Pandey shares, “A universe like ‘Special Ops’ demands a scale and visual appeal to bring it to life. Since the narrative spans across different time zones and geographies, locations play a key role in the overall storytelling.”

The new season makes good use of international locations as the director says, “International locations like Mauritius and Ukraine not only add a visual appeal but are also extremely key to the script.”

The new season traces the journey of the titular character played by actor Kay Kay Menon. It documents a stout character arc of Himmat Singh; a R&AW agent, as he goes from the nation’s greatest threat to the nation’s greatest spy. He singlehandedly tries to battle the odds of a system that is riddled with politics, bureaucracy and vested interests.

Shot over the schedule of 30 days, ‘Special Ops 1.5: The Himmat Story’ has been directed by maestro Neeraj Pandey and Shivam Nair. The show will take the audiences back in time to uncover the truth behind the making of Himmat Singh backed by its compelling narrative and phenomenal performances.

Starring Kay Kay Menon, Aftab Shivdasani, Gautami Kapoor, Vinay Pathak, Parmeet Sethi, KP Mukherjee, Aishwarya Sushmita, Maria Ryaboshapka, Shiv Jyoti Rajput, Vijay Vikram Singh, Santanu Ghatak, ‘Special Ops 1.5: The Himmat Story’ is set to stream on Disney+ Hotstar from November 12.