Earlier this month, Mihir Ahuja played an aspiring footballer battling for his dreams in Shabad: Reet Aur Riwaaz. Weeks from now, the actor will fight battles in the sky as he stars as an Indian Air Force (IAF) officer in Netflix’s Operation Safed Sagar. For the upcoming series that depicts India’s aerial campaign during the 1999 Kargil War, Ahuja has stepped into the shoes of retired IAF officer Bal Reddy. “People call him Baldy. I spoke to him over a call, and it was an [unbelievable] moment,” an enthusiastic Ahuja told mid-day.

If his first conversation with Reddy felt surreal, meeting the IAF veteran at the series’ launch in Mumbai left him in awe of the real-life hero. He recalled, “We were with all the real-life [officers] on the stage. It’s amazing to be in their presence and listen to their stories. They lived that life, went to a war, and their family members did not even know whether they would come back!”