ENCOUNTER SPECIALISTS WHOSE LIVES HAVE BEEN PORTRAYED ON SCREEN

Jyothi Venkatesh

Encounter specialists, police officers and Army personnel are constantly risking their lives for the country and its people – without ever knowing our names or faces. But if we were asked to name any officer who has risked their life for us, we wouldn’t be able to name any. Yes, their characters inspire films, but do we remember the real names of the officers?So today, we have created a list of encounter specialists and their real names as well as where you can watch their story.

 Navniet Sekera – Best known for bringing down the organized crime rates in UP in the early 2000s, this IPS Officer’s brave tales inspired the makers of MX Original Series Bhaukaal to put together a 10 episodic show based on true life events. Set against the backdrop of Muzaffarnagar, the then 'crime capital of India' – this series tells the tale of how this courageous officer (played by Mohit Raina) goes on a clean-up drive to punish criminals, battles local influential personalities and re-establishes the faith of the common man in the law.

 Daya Nayak – An encounter specialist who has executed over 83 criminals, including that of Chhota Rajan’s gang members. He was a member of the detection unit and took down many gangsters of the Mumbai underworld. The movie Ab Tak Chhappan is based on Daya Nayak’s life. Films like Risk and Department have overtones form his life as well

 Aftab Ahmed Khan – He is a former IPS officer, known for his encounter killings of gangsters in Mumbai. He’s the officer who led the Lokhandwala complex operation. Based on which, is the 2007 movie Shootout at Lokhandwala. The movie carefully depicts the gun battle between the Mumbai police and the gangsters.

 Sanjeev Kumar Yadav – He is known for his role in the 2008 Operation Batla House. The movie Batla House starring John Abrahim is based on Sanjeev Yadav’s life, tracing the events of the Batla house encounter. The movie also puts light on the allegations of the encounter being fake