Before Ramayan, Ramanand Sagar Created Bollywood’s First Major Spy Blockbuster That Changed the Industry

Long before he transformed Indian television with the iconic mythological series Ramayanfilmmaker Ramanand Sagar had already made a lasting mark on Hindi cinema by pioneering one of Bollywood’s earliest large scale spy thrillers. Today, as modern films like Dhurandhar 2 and Ramayana dominate headlines, Sagar’s earlier cinematic achievement is once again drawing attention for shaping two very different storytelling traditions in India.

Before becoming a household name through television, Sagar began his career in the 1930s working behind the scenes in the film industry and later established himself as a respected writer and filmmaker. He contributed dialogue and screenplay to several successful films and gradually rose to prominence as a producer director. His musical drama Aarzoo strengthened his reputation, but it was his ambitious spy thriller Ankhen that truly broke new ground in Bollywood filmmaking.

Released in 1968 and starring Dharmendra and Mala Sinha, Ankhen introduced audiences to an international style espionage narrative rarely seen in Indian cinema at the time. Inspired partly by the popularity of global spy films, Sagar created a story featuring secret agents, overseas missions, gadgets, and high stakes action. The film was shot across multiple countries including Japan and locations representing the Middle East, offering Indian viewers a cinematic scale that was unusual for its era.

The storyline revolved around a covert intelligence network formed by former freedom fighters working outside official government structures to counter threats against the country. Unlike later spy films that often focused on familiar geopolitical rivals, Ankhen reflected the tensions of its time by pointing toward eastern threats following the 1962 conflict with China. The production also stood out for its strong female lead role, with Mala Sinha portraying a capable spy who matched the hero in screen presence and action sequences.

Despite being produced on a relatively modest budget for its time, the film became one of the biggest commercial successes of its year and ran in theatres for over a year, earning the rare diamond jubilee status. Its scale, international locations, and action driven storytelling helped establish a template that later Hindi spy films would follow for decades.

Although Ramanand Sagar later achieved legendary status with Ramayanwhich reshaped mythological storytelling on Indian television, his earlier contribution through Ankhen remains one of the foundational moments in Bollywood’s evolution into large scale genre filmmaking. Even today, his television adaptation continues to be considered the benchmark against which new interpretations of the epic are measured.