Kartik Aaryan is reportedly set to lead Vivek Agnihotri’s next film, Operation Sindoor, in what would be the first collaboration between the National Award winning actor and the director of The Kashmir Files. The casting report surfaced on Wednesday, October 28, and it has already reshaped the conversation about the kind of cinema Kartik is choosing next.
According to a report in Variety India, cited by several Indian publications on Wednesday, Kartik will take the lead role in the film, based on Lt Gen K. J. S. “Tiny” Dhillon’s book Operation Sindoor: The Untold Story of India’s Deep Strikes Inside Pakistan. The makers are yet to announce the casting officially, so for now the news rests on the trade report. The detail in the coverage, naming the book, the producers and Kartik’s current schedule, suggests this is more than idle gossip.
What the report says
The report says Kartik will begin work on Operation Sindoor after he finishes shooting Captain India, the Shimit Amin film he is currently working on. That order matters, because it places the Agnihotri film firmly in Kartik’s near future rather than in some distant slate.
The film is backed by Agnihotri and producer Bhushan Kumar, with Kumar’s T-Series and Agnihotri’s I Am Buddha Productions jointly producing. It was announced in March this year, when the two joined hands for the project. No lead actor had been named at that stage, which is why Wednesday’s report has drawn so much attention.
News18, reporting the same Variety India story, notes that an earlier round of reports had linked another actor to the role, and that the latest report points to Kartik. Until the producers confirm it, the distinction matters: reported, not yet announced.
A story rooted in real events
Operation Sindoor takes its name from India’s military campaign launched on May 7, 2025, against terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir. The operation followed the terror attack in Pahalgam in April 2025, in which 26 people were killed in Baisaran Valley.
When Agnihotri announced the project in March, he described it as rooted in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack and backed by extensive research in collaboration with multiple wings of the Indian Armed Forces. He called it a story drawn from reality, and said the film aimed to confront the subject with facts and clarity. Dhillon’s book promises an insider account of the deep strikes, which gives the film a ready-made spine of reported detail.
Agnihotri has built his recent career on films drawn from real-world subjects, from The Tashkent Files to The Kashmir Files. A film on Operation Sindoor fits that pattern, and it raises the stakes: this is recent history, still fresh in public memory.
Why this fits Kartik’s current phase
Kartik, 35, recently won his first National Award, for Best Actor, for Chandu Champion. The 2024 Kabir Khan film cast him as a character based on Murlikant Petkar, India’s first individual Paralympic gold medallist, and the award changed how the industry talks about him.
Captain India continues that shift. Directed by Shimit Amin, it is based on Operation Raahat, India’s evacuation mission during the Yemen crisis in 2015, and it is planned for the Independence Day weekend next year. Operation Sindoor would make it three real-life projects in a row, and put Kartik at the centre of a military drama.
A packed calendar ahead
Even before Operation Sindoor, Kartik’s diary is full: Naagzilla in February 2027, Anurag Basu’s musical romantic drama opposite Sreeleela in April 2027, Captain India in August 2027, and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 4, in which he returns as Rooh Baba, plus a project with Kabir Khan.
That is potentially three releases in about seven months, before Operation Sindoor is counted. It explains why the report says the Agnihotri film comes after Captain India wraps. Scheduling, as much as casting, will decide when cameras roll.
What happens next
The immediate question is whether the makers will confirm the casting. An official announcement, with a poster or a statement from Agnihotri, Kumar or Kartik, would turn a trade report into a launch. Until then, Wednesday’s news stays strong but unconfirmed.
Tone will matter too. A film based on a recent military operation invites scrutiny from veterans, families and viewers who lived through the events it depicts. Agnihotri’s March note promised research and clarity rather than noise. How far the finished film keeps that promise will matter more than any casting headline.
FAQs
Is Kartik Aaryan confirmed for Operation Sindoor?
Not officially. A Variety India report on October 28 says he will lead the film, but the makers are yet to confirm it.
What is the film based on?
Lt Gen K. J. S. “Tiny” Dhillon’s book Operation Sindoor: The Untold Story of India’s Deep Strikes Inside Pakistan, about India’s campaign after the April 2025 Pahalgam attack.
Who is directing and producing it?
Vivek Agnihotri directs, jointly backed by Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series and Agnihotri’s I Am Buddha Productions. It was announced in March 2026.
When will Kartik start work on it?
After completing Shimit Amin’s Captain India, based on Operation Raahat, according to the report.
More details are expected when the makers announce the cast officially. Until then, Wednesday’s report is the clearest signal yet of where Kartik Aaryan’s career is heading next.
