Kunal Kapoor, Shabana Azmi’s The Empire Starts Streaming Today

The Empire release date and time: Confused about when and where to watch The Empire today? The OTT series based on Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire, is an adaptation of the novel, Empire of the Moghul: Raiders from the North by Alex Rutherford. The eight-episode historical drama explores the coming of age story of a young king and his fight to save the honour of his family and kingdom, the official synopsis of the series reads.

The series that promises to capture Mughal-era will have a direct OTT release on Friday (August 27). Directed by Mitakshara Kumar, the period drama stars Kunal Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, Drashti Dhami and Dino Morea in lead roles. It also features Rahul Dev and Aditya Seal among others.

The Empire is set in the backdrop of the late 15th and early 16th centuries and, by the trailer, it seems to follow Babur's early struggles in and around Samarkand, before he looked southeast towards Kabul and Delhi Sultanate. It chronicles the story of how he became the first Emperor of the Mughal dynasty. In the longer run, the show will focus on the rise and fall of the Mughal empire through generations, from Babur to Aurangzeb. It is billed as “India’s biggest ever TV show” in the digital space. The show is created by National Award-winning filmmaker Nikkhil Advani (Batla House) and is directed by Kumar, who has previously worked as an associate director with Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

Kunal Kapoor (as Babur) and veteran actor Shabana Azmi (as the kingmaker and Babur’s grandmother Aisan Daulat Begum) will play the lead in this season of the series. While Dhami plays Babur’s elder sister Khanzada Begum, Dino Morea has been roped in to play the antagonist for season 1. Newcomer Sahher Bambba will be seen as Humayun’s mother, while Aditya Seal plays a young Humayun. Actor and former model Rahul Dev essays the role of Wazir Khan, Babur’s mentor. More on the show here.

The Empire release date time

All eight episodes of The Empire season 1 can be streamed on August 27 at 12 am midnight IST on Disney+ Hotstar in India.

Watch The Empire trailer here: