Makers of Pratik Gandhi’s spy thriller Saare Jahan Se Accha recreated parts of Karachi in Mumbai and Chandigarh. The story of the series is inspired by India and Pakistan’s nuclear arms race in the 1970s
Pratik Gandhi in the series
When Netflix India unveiled its 2025 slate in February, one of the shows that caught attention was Pratik Gandhi's Saare Jahan Se Accha. Set in the 1970s, the spy thriller — which also stars Tillotama Shome, Rajat Kapoor, and Sunny Hinduja — revolves around an Indian undercover agent who is sent to Pakistan to stop it from becoming a nuclear force. Sources indicate that with a chunk of the series set in Pakistan, director Sumit Purohit and his team had to recreate parts of the country in India.
A source said, “More than half the story is set in the neighbouring country. As the unit couldn’t travel to Pakistan, massive sets reflecting Karachi were made in Mumbai and Chandigarh. One was built at the Golden Tobacco Factory in Vile Parle, Mumbai, and a Karachi marketplace was recreated at a local market in Chandigarh.” Sejal Shah and Bhavesh Mandalia, who recently backed Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s Costao, serve as the series’ producers and showrunners. “It is one of Netflix India’s biggest series, with a budget of around Rs 100 crore,” added the source.
Saare Jahan Se Accha comes as the latest offering from Gandhi, who is on an upward streak with Madgaon Express (2024), Do Aur Do Pyaar (2024), and Dhoom Dhaam earlier this year. But unlike these projects, the spy thriller will see him step into a grey role — something that he excels in, if his breakthrough show Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story (2020) was any indication. “The makers needed someone who could give a strong performance, and Pratik fit the bill. He is playing a complex character — under the cover of being a diplomat, he is an R&AW [Research and Analysis Wing] agent who stops Pakistan’s nuclear program. The role has been inspired by different real-life Indian spies. The show depicts the period when late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was at the helm, and RN Kao was heading R&AW, as India and Pakistan were trying to edge out one another in the nuclear arms race.”
Initially, the six-episode series was titled For Your Eyes Only. What brought on the rechristening? The source added that it was a mutual decision between the makers and the streaming giant. “All the stakeholders felt Saare Jahan Se Accha was a better fit as it’s desi and reflects the show’s patriotic theme.”
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