Director Nagesh Kukunoor returns after a creative pause with The Hunt, a gripping web series that revisits the investigation into the assassination of former Indian PM Rajiv Gandhi in 1991. Adapted from journalist Anirudhya Mitra’s book Ninety Days, Kukunoor calls it his “most challenging writing project” so far.
Known for human-centered stories like Iqbal, Dor, Lakshmi, and Dhanak, Kukunoor brings the same empathy here, avoiding political bias while staying factually accurate. He explains, “If I place a camera on someone, I first approach them with humanity, and only then peel back their layers.”
Kukunoor was a young chemical engineer in Dallas when the assassination shocked the world. Years later, he was drawn to the project not for its politics, but for the human drama and investigative detail it demanded. Working closely with Mitra’s account, he decided not to take interviews or fictional liberties.
The story follows a Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by D. Karthikeyan (played by Amit Sial) that took 90 days to trace and corner LTTE operative Sivarasan. Kukunoor emphasizes the role of chance and fate, pointing to real-life moments like a truck unintentionally stopping near a hideout, or a camera surviving a blast that helped crack the case.
The series doesn’t offer a cinematic high — “there’s no explosive climax, no glorious ending,” Kukunoor notes. It purposefully avoids dramatization, instead focusing on the slow, methodical, and often frustrating nature of real-life investigations. A planned six-episode series expanded to seven, simply to capture the long wait before the final breakthrough.
Kukunoor avoids black-and-white portrayals. Instead, the series explores the psychology of extremism and blurred moral lines, illustrated by the idea that “one man’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter.” Even terrorists are shown enjoying popular culture — like mimicking Rajinikanth.
He subtly challenges North-South stereotypes, drawing from his own background in Hyderabad and Tamil Nadu. As showrunner, he’s most proud of the authentic period look, shooting in old Hyderabad and Mumbai, minimizing production design to recreate the era truthfully.
On casting, Kukunoor states he values acting skill and screen presence over ethnic correctness, commending Amit Sial’s understated performance, saying, “In old photos, even top investigators looked like ordinary men.”