Episode 1: The Kaafir The series kicks off by introducing Himmat Singh, a senior RAW officer facing an audit regarding his "misuse" of government funds over the last 19 years. Key Plot Points
The Audit: Two officers, Abbas and Chaddha, interrogate Himmat about unexplained expenses totaling crores.
The 2001 Parliament Attack: Himmat recounts the 2001 terror attack, revealing his long-held theory.
The Sixth Terrorist: While official records state five terrorists died, Himmat is convinced a sixth mastermind, Ikhlaq Khan, escaped.
The Theory: Himmat explains that his secret "misspent" funds actually finance a deep-cover task force tracking Ikhlaq across the globe.
Farooq’s Introduction: In Dubai, we meet Farooq, a young operative and one of Himmat's secret assets, successfully infiltrating a suspicious network. 💡 Core Conflict
The episode establishes a dual narrative: the high-stakes political pressure of the internal audit versus the gritty, dangerous reality of international espionage. Character Spotlight: Himmat Singh Role: Intelligence Officer (RAW). Temperament: Calm, cynical, and highly intelligent. Special OPS Season 1 - Episode 1
Motivation: Obsessed with finding Ikhlaq Khan to prevent future tragedies. If you'd like to dive deeper, I can: Give you a recap of the ending (SPOILERS). Provide a profile of the sleeper agents Himmat uses. Compare the show's events to real-life history.
Which part of the Special OPS universe should we explore next?
Kay Kay Menon delivers a monologue in this opening sequence that should be studied in acting schools. He doesn’t raise his voice. He doesn’t slam tables. He simply lays out evidence with the quiet fury of a man who has seen the future and is horrified that no one believes him. This is not a patriotic chest-thumping hero; this is a weary bureaucrat who understands that in espionage, you win 20 years later, if at all.
Himmat Singh has sacrificed his family life, his career, and his sanity for 20 years. His wife wants a divorce. His daughter doesn't know him. The episode paints espionage not as a thrilling adventure, but as a chronic, debilitating illness.
After the court bombing, Himmat receives a cryptic piece of intel from an asset in Jordan: a laptop is being transported by a courier through the Turkey-Syria border. On that laptop is the key to identifying "The Bull."
He sends Colonel Farooq to intercept the courier. The scene that follows is a lesson in low-budget, high-tension action. There are no explosions or car chases. Instead, we watch Farooq blend into a crowded market, identify the courier, and silently pick his pocket to steal a USB drive. Episode 1: The Kaafir The series kicks off
When the data is decrypted back in Delhi, Himmat finally has a face. The laptop contains a single image: a photograph of a man in his 50s, with hard eyes, standing in front of a European landmark.
Himmat whispers the name that will drive the rest of the season: “Found you.”
The series premiere of Special Ops: Lioness, titled "Grounded," introduces us to Cruz (Zoe Saldana), a highly skilled CIA operative. Cruz is chosen to lead a covert operation known as Lioness, aimed at infiltrating and disrupting a global terrorist organization.
The episode focuses on Cruz's background and her recruitment into the Lioness program. We learn about her troubled past and her exceptional skills that make her an asset to the CIA. Cruz is tasked with going undercover to gather intelligence on a terrorist group. Her mission becomes complicated when she realizes the depth of her target's operations.
The episode opens with a high-stakes bomb blast in Delhi’s Khan Market in 2001. Himmat Singh (Kay Kay Menon), a sharp but disillusioned RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) officer, notices a pattern: every major terrorist attack in India—including Parliament (2001), Mumbai (2008), and multiple bombings—bears the signature of a single handler. The intelligence community dismisses it as coincidence.
Flash forward nearly two decades. Himmat has secretly assembled an off-the-books team of five operatives, each recruited for a specific skill. Episode 1 primarily follows Rohan (Parmeet Sethi) in Istanbul and Farooq Ali (Vinay Pathak) in Nepal, as they close in on a man they believe is the link to the mastermind, codenamed “Himmat’s Ghost.” The episode ends with a sudden, violent twist that confirms Himmat’s theory—and the real hunt begins. Character Introduction: Himmat Singh Kay Kay Menon delivers
Special OPS Season 1, Episode 1 – "The Invisible Enemy" is a masterclass in setup. It respects the genre of espionage by treating it as a chess game, not a wrestling match. Kay Kay Menon delivers a career-defining performance, and Neeraj Pandey proves that he understands the grammar of global spy thrillers better than anyone else in the Indian OTT space.
If you are a fan of Homeland, The Bureau (Le Bureau des Légendes), or Zero Dark Thirty, this episode will feel like home. If you are expecting War or Pathaan—you will be disappointed. This is a show for those who believe that the most dangerous weapons are not bombs, but information.
Rating for Episode 1: ★★★★½ (4.5/5)
The episode jumps to present-day Delhi. Himmat Singh is now a grizzled, desk-bound analyst at RAW, frustrated by bureaucracy and institutional memory loss. He’s been tracking a pattern for 19 years: multiple terror attacks across India — from Akshardham (2002) to Samjhauta Express (2007) to Bodh Gaya (2013) — all seemingly connected by one invisible thread: a man known only as “Ikhlaq” or “The Invisible Enemy.”
His superiors dismiss it as paranoia. But when a Kashmiri journalist, Farid Mir (Anup Soni), is secretly recorded negotiating a weapon deal with a cross-border handler, Himmat sees the signature of Ikhlaq again.
The episode’s tension peaks when Himmat reveals he has been running a five-man “ghost team” for years — agents whose identities are unknown even to RAW’s top brass. Each is an expert in infiltration, and they have been placed deep undercover in different terror modules across the Middle East and South Asia.