10 Indian Web Series Based On True Stories To Watch After ‘Operation Safed Sagar’

Written By: Entertainment Desk

Aug 18, 2026 14:17 IST ⓘ

Indian web series based on true stories including ‘Scam 1992’ and ‘The Railway Men’.

Netflix’s recently released six-episode drama series ‘Operation Safed Sagar: The Untold Story of the Kargil War’ has emerged as one of the latest Indian streaming titles to draw attention for its portrayal of a major chapter in the country’s military history. The six-part series revisits the 1999 Kargil conflict from the Indian Air Force’s perspective, focusing on the Golden Arrows squadron and the challenges its pilots faced during the war. Directed by Oni Sen and created by Kushal Srivastava and Abhijeet Singh Parmar, the series features Siddharth, Jimmy Sheirgill and Abhay Verma in key roles.

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It premiered on Netflix in August 2026. The series does not merely concentrate on aerial combat; it also explored leadership, preparation and the enormous pressure placed on pilots during one of the most challenging conflicts in modern Indian history. The popularity of such stories once again underlines the growing appetite for Indian series that revisit real incidents, personalities and historical moments.

If the mix of military operations, courage, investigation, history and real-life drama in ‘Operation Safed Sagar’ made you curious about similar titles, there are several excellent options available across streaming platforms.

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From India's freedom struggle to the Bhopal gas tragedy, the 1992 stock market scam, and the Uphaar Cinema fire, these 10 Indian web series bring extraordinary real-world stories to the screen. Without further ado, here are some of the best Indian shows based on real-life events, that are available on various platforms:

1. The Forgotten Army – Azaadi Ke Liye (Prime Video)

Cast: Sunny Kaushal, Sharvari, Rohit Choudhary, Karanvir Malhotra, M.K. Raina

Creator and Director: Kabir Khan

For viewers who particularly enjoyed the military setting of ‘Operation Safed Sagar’, ‘The Forgotten Army – Azaadi Ke Liye’ is an obvious recommendation. Created and directed by Kabir Khan, the series is based on true events surrounding the Indian National Army (INA), led by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. Amazon describes the show as the story of INA soldiers who marched towards India with the slogan “Challo Dilli” in their fight against British rule.

Sunny Kaushal and Sharvari lead the series, which also features Rohit Choudhary, Karanvir Malhotra and veteran actor MK Raina. The story combines the larger political and military circumstances of the INA with the personal journeys of the soldiers involved. It explores sacrifice, loyalty, romance and the cost of fighting for a cause bigger than oneself.

2. The Railway Men (Netflix)

Cast: R Madhavan, Kay Kay Menon, Divyenndu, Babil Khan

Director: Shiv Rawail

‘The Railway Men’ demonstrates how extraordinary heroism can emerge during a catastrophe. The Netflix series is inspired by the true stories of Indian Railways employees who attempted to save lives during the Bhopal gas tragedy in December 1984. YRF Entertainment lists the series as a story of railway employees who battled extraordinary circumstances to help fellow citizens on the night of the disaster.

Shiv Rawail directed the series, with R Madhavan, Kay Kay Menon, Divyenndu and Babil Khan forming its principal cast. Instead of approaching the tragedy solely as a historical disaster, the series puts its characters at the centre of the narrative. Their decisions, fear and willingness to help others drive the emotional core of the story.

3. Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story (SonyLiv)

Cast: Pratik Gandhi, Shreya Dhanwanthary, Hemant Kher, Satish Kaushik

Director: Hansal Mehta

‘Scam 1992’ proves that a true-story thriller does not need war or crime to keep audiences hooked. Directed by Hansal Mehta, the series chronicles the rise and fall of stockbroker Harshad Mehta against the backdrop of the 1992 securities scam. It is based on the book by journalists Sucheta Dalal and Debashis Basu, ‘The Scam: Who Won, Who Lost, Who Got Away’. Pratik Gandhi's portrayal of Harshad Mehta became the centrepiece of the series, while Shreya Dhanwanthary plays journalist Sucheta Dalal.

The show takes a complicated financial scandal and turns it into an accessible character-driven drama about ambition, risk, influence and consequences. It also demonstrates how institutions can be challenged by individuals operating within their systems.

4. Rocket Boys (SonyLiv)

Cast: Jim Sarbh, Ishwak Singh, Regina Cassandra, Rajit Kapur

Creator and Director: Abhay Pannu

‘Rocket Boys’ takes audiences into India's scientific history and explores the lives of two of the country's most important scientific pioneers, Homi J. Bhabha and Vikram Sarabhai. Jim Sarbh plays Bhabha, while Ishwak Singh portrays Sarabhai. The series explores their professional and personal journeys and the challenges surrounding the development of India's scientific institutions in the years following Independence.

The show focuses on the scientists and institutions that helped build India's capabilities in nuclear science and space research. The series is particularly worth watching for viewers who enjoy stories about ambition, innovation and nation-building. It shows that some of the country's most consequential battles were fought not on conventional front lines but in laboratories, research institutions and policy rooms.

5. Delhi Crime (Netflix)

Cast: Shefali Shah, Rasika Dugal, Adil Hussain, Rajesh Tailang

Creator and Director: Richie Mehta

‘Delhi Crime’ is one of India's most acclaimed true-crime dramas and offers a much more grounded alternative to military and historical dramas. The first season is inspired by the Delhi Police investigation following the 2012 Delhi gang-rape case. Richie Mehta created and directed the series, with Shefali Shah playing DCP Vartika Chaturvedi. Rather than sensationalising the crime, the first season concentrates on the investigation, the police team and the painstaking process of identifying and apprehending the suspects.

Shefali Shah's restrained performance gives the show much of its emotional weight, while Rasika Dugal, Adil Hussain and Rajesh Tailang add depth to the police ensemble.

6. Trial By Fire (Netflix)

Cast: Rajshri Deshpande, Abhay Deol, Rajesh Tailang, Ashish Vidyarthi

Directors: Prashant Nair and Randeep Jha

‘Trial By Fire’ is one of the most emotionally powerful entries on this list. The limited series is based on the book ‘Trial by Fire: The Tragic Tale of the Uphaar Fire Tragedy’ by Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy. The 1997 fire at Delhi's Uphaar Cinema claimed 59 lives and injured more than 100 people. Rajshri Deshpande and Abhay Deol play Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy, a couple who lost their two children in the tragedy and spent years pursuing accountability.

Directed by Prashant Nair and Randeep Jha, the series goes beyond the night of the fire to examine the lengthy struggle for justice that followed.

7. Scoop (Netflix)

Cast: Karishma Tanna, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Harman Baweja, Prosenjit Chatterjee

Creators: Hansal Mehta and Mrunmayee Lagoo Waikul

The Netflix drama is inspired by journalist Jigna Vora's memoir ‘Behind Bars in Byculla: My Days in Prison’. It follows crime journalist Jagruti Pathak, whose career takes a dramatic turn after she becomes entangled in a murder investigation and finds herself caught between the media, the police, and the underworld. Karishma Tanna leads the series, with Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub and Harman Baweja among the principal cast members.

What makes ‘Scoop’ fascinating is its examination of how a journalist can move from reporting a major story to becoming the centre of one. Ambition, reputation, media pressure and the criminal justice system all collide as the narrative progresses.

8. Mumbai Diaries 26/11 (Prime Video)

Cast: Mohit Raina, Konkona Sen Sharma, Shreya Dhanwanthary, Satyajeet Dubey, Tina Desai

Creators and Directors: Nikkhil Advani and Nikhil Gonsalves

Created by Nikkhil Advani and directed by Advani and Nikhil Gonsalves, the series follows doctors, nurses and other hospital staff as they attempt to save lives while the city is under attack. Amazon's announcement described it as a fictional medical drama set against the backdrop of 26/11. The series shifts attention away from the command centres and security operations to the hospital emergency room. Its characters have to deal with an unprecedented number of injured people while facing the wider chaos unfolding outside.

9. IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack (Netflix)

Cast: Vijay Varma, Naseeruddin Shah, Pankaj Kapur, Dia Mirza, Arvind Swamy

Director: Anubhav Sinha

Directed by Anubhav Sinha, the six-episode series dramatizes the seven-day hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight IC 814 in December 1999. The aircraft, travelling from Kathmandu to Delhi, was taken over by five armed hijackers and eventually landed in Taliban-controlled Kandahar. The crisis became an enormous diplomatic and political challenge for India. The series is adapted from the book ‘Flight Into Fear: A Captain's Story’ by Captain Devi Sharan and Srinjoy Chowdhury. Rather than focusing exclusively on the passengers, the narrative also examines government officials, negotiators, and other individuals attempting to manage the crisis on the ground.

10. The Hunt: The Rajiv Gandhi Assassination Case (SonyLiv)

Cast: Amit Sial, Sahil Vaid and others

Director: Nagesh Kukunoor

‘The Hunt: The Rajiv Gandhi Assassination Case’ takes viewers into one of the most consequential investigations in India's modern history. The seven-episode series chronicles the massive 90-day manhunt that followed Rajiv Gandhi's assassination at Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, in 1991. It focuses on the Special Investigation Team and the painstaking effort to piece together the conspiracy behind the assassination.

SonyLIV describes the show as being based on true events and on Anirudhya Mitra’s book ‘Ninety Days: The True Story of the Hunt for Rajiv Gandhi's Assassins’. Nagesh Kukunoor directs the series, with Amit Sial leading the cast.