Who was RN Kao? India's 'greatest spy' founded RAW, helped liberate Bangladesh, now subject of Karan Johar's next film

Dharma Productions has announced a film on RN Kao, the first chief of RAW, India's premiere military intelligence agency.

Updated on: Sep 21, 2026, 12:34:16 IST

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It has been six years since the first announcement was made about Karan Johar’s ambitious film on Indian spymaster RN Kao, and the film finally has a release date. On Monday, Dharma Productions formally announced that it is working on a film based on the legendary spy’s life. The film, which will showcase Kao’s contributions to India's intelligence-building, is being co-produced by Leo Media Collective. The announcement has brought focus back on RN Kao’s illustrious life and career, which laid the foundation for India’s espionage world.

Who was RN Kao?

Rameshwar Nath Kao was born in Benares in a Kashmiri Hindu family in 1918. He studied at Lucknow University and later at Allahabad University, before beginning his career in a cigarette company in Allahabad around 1940. The same year, he passed the Civil Services exam and joined the Indian Imperial Police (the predecessor to the Indian Police Service). Around the time of India’s independence, he was deputed to the Intelligence Bureau and worked on the security of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. In the 50s, he gained distinction with his work in setting up an intelligence and security organisation in Ghana, as well as helping the Chinese and British investigate the bombing of the Kashmir Princess, a Lockheed L-749A Constellation aircraft owned by Air India.

RAW and work during the Bangladesh War

After the 1962 India-China War, the Indian administration was livid that its intelligence agencies failed to predict the attack. Following this, Kao was handpicked by PM Nehru to establish a separate organisation for gathering intelligence for military purposes. He became the first director of the newly formed Aviation Research Centre, which was still a part of the IB. In 1968, new Prime Minister Indira Gandhi bifurcated the IB to form the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW). Kao, who had helped establish the organisation, was chosen as its first chief. He spent the next nine years as the head of RAW, building the organisation from the ground up.

His finest hour came during the 1971 India-Pakistan War. After Pakistan launched Operation Searchlight, RAW played a highly important role in the liberation of Bangladesh. They gave arms and training support to the Mukti Bahini militia during the initial stages of the war. Indian operatives travelled to East Pakistan to arm the local population and capitalise on the frustrations brewing within. In his book Inside R&AW, Ashok Raina wrote, “Another R&AW assessment sent to the prime minister spelt out the need for surgical intervention for the reports that came in gave positive indications that Pakistan was preparing for war. R&AW received the green signal. R&AW established guerrilla training camps along the border and began to train an illegal army.”

Later career

Kao had unlimited access to Indira Gandhi and was considered one of her confidantes. His longtime associate Victor Longer famously said, “Intelligence is the only government business that depends upon the spoken word. Sometimes you can understand signs and body language. Kao had that rapport with Mrs Gandhi.” But after Indira lost the 1977 General Elections, the new government was suspicious of Kao. He retired quietly as the new government took over. In 1980, when Indira Gandhi returned to power, he returned as the National Security Advisor, both to Indira and later to Rajiv Gandhi. In the 80s, he was instrumental in establishing the National Security Guard (NSG) as a counterinsurgency force. He was also instrumental in Sikkim's merger into the Indian Union in 1981. Kao retired from public life after 1989 and died in 2002, at the age of 83.

About the film on RN Kao

The large-scale espionage-actioner is based on the book Gentleman Spymaster by Nitin Gokhale, and the makers are scheduled to begin filming by mid-2026. The casting, director and other details are kept under wraps for now, but insiders confirm that an A-Lister will spearhead the project. The film chronicles the journey from 1955 to 1971, establishing the need for R&AW, leading to the formation of the first-ever mission in the 1971 war against Pakistan.

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In a statement, Karan Johar shared, “Leo Media has painstakingly been researching and dramatising this narrative with passion for the past two years. We want this film to be a gripping story based on true facts to pay homage to RAW and honour their milestone year with a solid motion picture; all of us at Dharma are so excited to get going.”

The yet-untitled film is targeting a theatrical release on August 11, 2028, for the Independence Day weekend.

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