The Freelancer (TV series)

The Freelancer is an Indian Hindi-language action thriller television series created and written by Neeraj Pandey, with Bhav Dhulia serving as the director after Khakee: The Bihar Chapter (2022). Produced by Shital Bhatia under the banner of Friday Storytellers, the series features Mohit Raina, Anupam Kher and Kashmira Pardeshi. It premiered on Disney+ Hotstar on 1 September 2023.

Plot
Inayat Khan and Avinash Kamath are Mumbai Police officers who get thrown out of the police force after Inayat slaps an arrogant and corrupt politician who tries to force them to look the other way when the politician's son commits some crimes. While Avinash becomes a military freelancer, Inayat struggles to find a new job. Over the years, the two lose contact of each other.

In the meanwhile, Inayat's daughter Aliya marries Mohsin Fazal who comes from a well to do family in Malaysia. Soon after the marriage the Fazal family makes a family trip to Turkey, from where the whole family crosses the border into Syria to join ISIS. Aliya is opposed to this, but is forced to go along by her husband and his family.

Once they cross over to Syria, Inayat loses contact with his daughter and worries about her. When he approaches Mumbai police for help in locating his daughter, no one pays any attention to his pleas because he had been dishonourably removed from the police force. Left with no option, he stages a false security incident in front of the Consulate General of the United States, Mumbai in which he is shot dead, knowing that the incident will be plastered all over the media and get the attention of Avinash, who he believes is the only person who can rescue Aliya.

When Avinash visits Inayat's wife Sabeena to pay his condolences, she tells him about Aliya's disappearance in Turkey. After investigation, Avinash finds that the whole Fazal family had been radicalised under the influence of one Farhat Khala.

From Syria, Aliya manages to get in touch with her mother and explain everything to her. Sabeena puts Avinash in touch with Aliya, and he launches a rescue operation to get her back.

Cast

 * Mohit Raina as Avinash Damodharan Kamath alias "The Freelancer": Mrunal's husband
 * Anupam Kher as Dr. Arif Ajmaal Khan
 * Kashmira Pardeshi as Aleeya Khan / Rukhsaar Ahmed / Sonia Shah, Inayat and Sabeena's daughter
 * Ayesha Raza Mishra as Sabeena Khan née Anwar: Aliya's mother; Inayat's wife
 * Manjari Fadnis as Mrunal Kamath née Chikate: Avinash's wife
 * Sarah-Jane Dias as CIA Agent Radha Lampat Baxi
 * Sushant Singh as Inayat Khan, Aliya's father; Sabeena's husband
 * Navneet Malik as Mohsin Fazal: Aliya's husband
 * Geeta Agrawal Sharma as Asar Fazal
 * Hardika Sharma as Child Aliya
 * Edward Sonnenblick as Burt Raphael
 * Karan Sharma as Afsaar
 * Danny Clifford as Buzz Jones
 * Mario Silva as Sheikh Khaleel
 * Balaji Gauri as Farhat Khala
 * John Kokken as Intelligence officer Raghavendra Sethu
 * Aakash Dabhade as Wilson
 * Sairi Salma as Nadia Khadki
 * Sangay Tsheltrim as Gurung Thapa, Nepali free lancer
 * Jalila Talemsi as Amena
 * Anouar Akerrmann as Ritchie
 * Sami Fekkak as The Photographer
 * Youssef Tounzi as Registration officer 1
 * Faycal Zeglat as Registration officer 2
 * Varun Pande
 * Shahid Lateef
 * Ujjwal Gauraha as Janitor

Production
The series was announced on Disney+ Hotstar by Friday Storytellers, and features Mohit Raina in the titular role, Anupam Kher and Kashmira Pardeshi as the lead. It is based on Shirish Thorat's A Ticket to Syria (2017). The principal photography of the series commenced in 2022 and wrapped up in 2023. The series is set in Syria and were primarily shot in Mumbai, Morocco, Europe, America and the Middle East. The trailer of the series was released on 8 August 2023.

Reception
Anuj Kumar of The Hindu stated that "Bereft of high-octane action or deep insight, this thriller created by Neeraj Pandey feels formulaic and farcical" Archika Khurana of The Times of India rated 3.5 out of 5 and wrote that "Without a doubt, 'The Freelancer' adds another success to Neeraj Pandey's portfolio. It's a must-watch for its engaging plot, tension-filled atmosphere, and effective storytelling, which captivate viewers throughout." Deepa Gahlot of Rediff.com rated the series 2.5/5 stars. Sunidhi Prajapat of OTT Play rated the series 3.5/5 stars.

The series was reviewed by Shubhra Gupta for The Indian Express.