Noida: Every war drama needs a commanding presence at its centre. In Netflix’s Operation Safed Sagar, that presence is Jimmy Shergill’s Wing Commander Birender Singh Dhanoa, known to his squadron simply as “Tony.”
He barely raises his voice through the series, and he doesn’t need to. What makes the character land, though, is that he isn’t invented. Tony Dhanoa was real, his squadron was real, and the war he led them through became an important chapter in Indian military history.
Who Is BS Dhanoa?
BS Dhanoa was commissioned into the Indian Air Force’s fighter stream in June 1978, going on to gain flying experience across aircraft ranging from the MiG-21 to the Jaguar, MiG-29 and Su-30MKI during a career that eventually spanned more than four decades. By the time the Kargil conflict broke out in May 1999, he was commanding a frontline ground-attack fighter squadron equipped with MiG-21 aircraft.
As the fighting escalated, Dhanoa and his squadron became part of the Indian Air Force’s operations over the difficult high-altitude terrain of Kargil.
Under his leadership, the squadron devised innovative methods of night bombing at altitudes that had never previously been attempted, according to the Ministry of Defence. The unit had already been adjudged the best fighter squadron of Headquarters Western Air Command before the war and went on to emerge as the most decorated IAF unit of the Kargil conflict.
Dhanoa himself was awarded the Yudh Seva Medal and Vayu Sena Medal in 1999.
Looking back on the conflict in an interview with ANI, Dhanoa admitted that the developments had caught them by surprise.
“Kargil, May, 1999 was a big surprise.”
He shared, “When my squadron was asked to move, we had no idea that we are likely to go into a combat. It was on 21st of May, we realised something can happen. All of us were very excited because after 1971 we were going to drop our weapon for the first time in anger.”
The Officer Who Kept Climbing
For most people, Kargil would have been the high point of a career. For Dhanoa, it was the middle of one.
Over the next two decades, he moved through some of the IAF’s most senior operational postings and became Vice Chief of the Air Staff in June 2015. He received the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2015 and Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2016 before taking over as the 25th Chief of the Air Staff on December 31, 2016.
He remained Air Chief until his retirement in September 2019, a tenure that included the February 2019 Balakot air strike following the Pulwama terror attack.
Why This Story, Why Now
BS Dhanoa remained closely involved with Operation Safed Sagar as the series came together, lending his experience to a production developed through extensive research and consultations with Indian Air Force veterans. Netflix has confirmed that the series benefited from his guidance and support.
Speaking about the series, he didn’t mince words: “India is ready to hear this story now. In fact, it is long overdue.”
His reasoning traced back to two things he had hoped for since his days as Air Chief — that the IAF’s role in Kargil finally be told in full, and that stories such as this inspire more young people to consider a career in the skies.
Jimmy Shergill plays Wing Commander B.S. Dhanoa “Tony” in the series, while Siddharth portrays Squadron Leader Ajay Ahuja. The drama centres on the Golden Arrows and the Indian Air Force’s role during the Kargil War.
Operation Safed Sagar premiered at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on August 6 and began streaming on Netflix on August 7.
