Fact vs Fiction: Dhurandhar 2 and the Reality of the “Unknown Gunmen”

Once I saw the movie, I realized why some are calling it BJP propaganda. In fact, a lot of reviewers specifically mention that the movie is good in the first half and becomes a complete propaganda in the second half. What makes them say that?

Once I saw the movie, I realized what happens in the second half.

In the second half of the movie, there is a chapter — “unknown gunmen.” At first, I thought it was just a fictional label and what is shown in the movie did not happen. That would have qualified to be called propaganda.

Turns out, it wasn’t fiction at all. It was a real headline from one of Pakistan’s most credible newspapers, DAWN. The term was used by Pakistani news channels (check youtube)

The report claims that more than twenty “individuals” — read terrorists involved in attacks against India — were killed by “unknown gunmen,” with allegations that these were covertly ordered hits.

The movie does take some creative liberty while showing the true events.

It compresses timelines.
It simplifies networks.
And most importantly, it presents it as one coordinated operation.

Reality? Much messier.

These killings:

Happened over multiple years (2020–2024)
Across different cities (Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, PoK, even Canada)
And involved different groups (LeT, JeM, Hizbul, Khalistani outfits)

Some were assassinations.
Some were natural or suspicious deaths.

But they all happened.

Here’s the fact-checked list — who they were, what they were wanted for, and what actually happened.

Abdul Rehman Makki

Organization (role): Jamaat-ud-Dawa / Lashkar-e-Taiba (Deputy chief; financier)
Wanted for: Financing and supporting the 2008 Mumbai attacks and global terror networks
Killed / died: ✅ 27 Dec 2024 – Suspicious (heart attack), Lahore

Syed Khalid Raza

Organization (role): Al-Badr
Wanted for: Militant logistics and support in Jammu and Kashmir
Killed / died: ✅ 26 Feb 2023 – Shot dead, Karachi

Muhammad Riaz / Abu Qasim Kashmiri

Organization (role): Lashkar-e-Taiba (operative)
Wanted for: Coordination and support for militant activity in J&K
Killed / died: ✅ Sept 2023 – Shot inside mosque, Rawalakot

Zahoor Mistry

Organization (role): Harkat/JeM-linked network
Wanted for: Indian Airlines Flight 814 hijacking
Killed / died: ✅ March 2022 – Shot dead, Karachi

Dawood Malik

Organization (role): Lashkar-e-Jabbar (Founder)
Wanted for: Militant attacks; extremist network operations
Killed / died: ✅ Oct 2023 – Shot dead, North Waziristan

Bashir Ahmad Peer

Organization (role): Hizbul Mujahideen
Wanted for: Militancy and insurgent activity in J&K
Killed / died: ✅ 20 Feb 2023 – Shot dead, Rawalpindi

Shahid Latif

Organization (role): Jaish-e-Mohammed
Wanted for: Pathankot Airbase attack (2016)
Killed / died: ✅ Oct 2023 – Shot inside mosque, Sialkot

Paramjit Singh Panjwar (Possibly called Amarjit in the movie)

Organization (role): Khalistan Commando Force
Wanted for: Khalistani militancy + narcotics network
Killed / died: ✅ May 2023 – Shot dead, Lahore

Hardeep Singh Nijjar

Organization (role): Khalistan Tiger Force
Wanted for: Terror conspiracy allegations (as per Indian agencies)
Killed / died: June 2023 – Shot dead, Surrey

👉 Didn’t show in the movie but it was considered as a part of the unknown gunmen pattern.

Abu Qasim

Organization (role): Lashkar-e-Taiba
Wanted for: Udhampur terror attack (2015)
Killed / died: ✅ Oct 2015 – Killed by Indian forces

👉 Much earlier event, but included for narrative continuity

Abdul Salam Bhuttavi

Organization (role): Lashkar-e-Taiba (ideologue)
Wanted for: Recruitment and ideological support
Killed / died: ✅ May 2020 – Suspicious death in Jail

Iqbal Bhatkal

Organization (role): Indian Mujahideen
Wanted for: Serial bombings across India
Killed / died: ❌ Alive (absconding, likely in Pakistan)

👉 I could not find anything that said he was dead/killed. But since the movie got all others correct, I don’t have much reason to believe that they would just make this up.

Syed Noor Shalobar (along with three others)

Organization (role): IS-Khoresan
Wanted for:
Killed / died: ✅ March 2023

🔥 The Real Takeaway

The “unknown gunmen” chapter is not fiction. The killings did happen. Pakistan’s own press—like Dawn—reported them.

What the movie does is compress reality. It folds a multi-year pattern into a single, cinematic operation. In truth, these incidents were spread out—mostly between 2022 and 2024, with a few going back to 2020. Different cities, different actors, different moments.

But strip away the editing, and one fact remains:

👉 Terrorists responsible for orchestrating or supporting attacks against India were eliminated.

Not in one night.
Not in one mission.
But consistently, over time.

And when you zoom out, the pattern creates a perception—fair or not, proven or not—that this is a shift in posture. A signal. A message.

That’s where the line from the film lands hard:

“Yeh naya Bharat hai… ghar mein ghusega bhi, marega bhi.”

The film does not just use the line, it shows and proves the line.

Now it becomes clearer why parties like the Indian National Congress and Samajwadi Party, along with sections of their support ecosystem, are quick to label it propaganda.

Because the discomfort isn’t just about cinema.
It’s about the narrative the cinema is reinforcing.

A narrative where:

Safe havens don’t look so safe anymore
Time and distance don’t guarantee immunity
And the old playbook feels… outdated

You can debate attribution. You can question intent.
But you can’t ignore the pattern.

And that’s exactly what makes this conversation uncomfortable—especially for those who would rather it didn’t exist at all.

Thanks for reading. If you liked the post, hit like and let me know your thoughts via comments.