Top Flight: Movie About First Indian Female Combat Pilot to be Released on Netflix

Bollywood producer Karan Johar on Tuesday confirmed that his upcoming film on India’s first female Air Force pilot titled “Gunjan Saxena: The Kargill Girl” will soon be released on Netflix. The exact release date still remains undisclosed.

The film directed by Sharan Sharma under the banner of Karan's Dharma Productions was set for theatrical release on 13 March and features 23-year-old Bollywood sweetheart Janhvi Kapoor in the lead role.

The movie's makers announced the digital release of the film on their social media handles with a short video clip. Karan and Janhvi along with other Bollywood celebs including Arjun Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor Khan promoted the news on social media.

"This isn’t just a film for me- it's a journey that's taught me to believe in myself. A journey I can't wait to share with you all. About a girl who set out to do something simple, follow her dreams", Janvhi wrote on Instagram.

Long before the first women pilots were officially commissioned, Flight Lieutenant Gunjan Saxena ventured into the Kargill war between India and Pakistan in 1999 and made history as the first Indian female in combat.

At the time, Saxena was tasked with evacuating injured Indian soldiers from the front.

The flick's powerful theme left many fans waiting in anticipation for the release, but due to the coronavirus their wait has been extended. Now that the film is ready for a Netflix release, netizens cannot keep calm on social media.

​Netflix, with its array of original series and movies, has millions of subscribers in India – where the American streaming giant has its cheapest monthly plan at just INR 199 ($2.63). Amazon Prime and Disney Hotstar are also prominent content players in the country.

Before Gunjan Saxena’s biopic, two other Bollywood movies - Gulabo Sitabo and Shakuntala Devi - both starring celebrated stars of the film fraternity like Amitabh Bachchan and Ayushmann Khurrana were set for a digital release.