Sunil Bakshi was a recurring antagonist in Season 2 of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. He was a high-ranking member of the terrorist organization HYDRA who served under Dr. Daniel Whitehall, working with him to obtain the alien Diviner relic and exploit its power to destroy S.H.I.E.L.D.. He was portrayed by Simon Kassianides.
History[]
Bakshi first appeared as HYDRA's handler for the superhuman assassin Carl Creel. He commanded Creel to obtain an alien device known then as the Obelisk and provided him a near-indestructible material called musgravite that Creel could absorb to make himself even stronger. Creel succeeded in his mission, killing two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and delivering the Obelisk to Bakshi. However, the hand-off was interrupted by Lance Hunter who attempted to shoot Creel, and in the confusion the case containing the Obelisk was stolen by Raina.
Bakshi was responsible for a number of other HYDRA activities, such as kidnapping and brainwashing Agent 33 and attempting to recruit and brainwash Donnie Gill. He also kept a close eye on Jemma Simmons who was working undercover at HYDRA Laboratories to gain information on the organization's research projects. While Bakshi discovered that Simmons was still working for S.H.I.E.L.D., he failed to eliminate her as she was extracted by another undercover S.H.I.E.L.D. operative, Bobbi Morse.
HYDRA and S.H.I.E.L.D. would soon be competing with each other as they attempted to find the Obelisk and clues behind the alien glyphs etched onto its surface. During this time, the Obelisk was retrieved by Calvin Zabo who delivered it to HYDRA, and while they could not unlock all its secrets, they were able to design new weapons based on its lethal petrification effects.
Later on, Bakshi received a call from Grant Ward, who requested a meeting. Bakshi, along with two guards met Ward in a bar, run by a member of HYDRA. During the meeting, Ward asked Bakshi to whom he answered, to which Bakshi replied that he answered to Daniel Whitehall. Ward also asked if he could meet Whitehall, as Baron Wolfgang von Strucker was overseas. Initially, Bakshi told Ward that Whitehall was busy, but after Ward told him that he could get them close to Phil Coulson, Bakshi seemed intrigued. However, Ward did not come through on his promise and instead he seemingly betrayed HYDRA as he murdered Bakshi's security guards, as well as the bartender before knocking Bakshi unconscious and tying him to a chair, leaving him behind with masking tape over his mouth with a message that read For Coulson. Bakshi was found a few hours later by a S.H.I.E.L.D. team, led by Melinda May and Lance Hunter. Bakshi awoke with a start when he realized his fate and was captured and taken back to the Playground for interrogation.
While in custody, Bakshi was questioned by Bobbi Morse. However, Bakshi attempted to kill himself by crushing a cyanide capsule implanted in his cheekbone. Simmons was able to provide medical attention quickly enough to prevent Bakshi from dying, but Bakshi was rendered comatose and put on life support for some time. When he eventually recovered, he found out that S.H.I.E.L.D. were transferring him into the custody of General Glenn Talbot. While in transit, Bakshi was retrieved by HYDRA mercenaries who shot and killed Coulson and May, or so it appeared. The incident had actually been staged as part of a larger plan by S.H.I.E.L.D. to eliminate all of HYDRA's leaders in one swift motion.
With Whitehall dead after the conflict in Puerto Rico, HYDRA's remaining leaders were making power plays of their own, which S.H.I.E.L.D. wanted to take advantage of. Bakshi contacted Octavian Bloom to arrange a meeting, expecting that he would soon become HYDRA's new leader as he had previously been groomed by Whitehall for the position. Upon arriving at the Bloom Estate Winery, Bakshi told Bloom what his rescuers told him: they had a kill-order to eliminate him from leadership contention. Once they had confirmed their theories with Doctor List, Bakshi and Bloom sent kill-orders for the other leaders of HYDRA as they believed that the kill order could only have been sent by them. Within moments the Banker, the Baroness and the Sheikh were dead and the leadership of HYDRA fell purely onto Bakshi, Bloom, List and Baron Strucker. Suddenly, the mercenaries - actually Bobbi Morse and Lance Hunter in disguise - entered the mansion and killed Bloom. Bakshi realized that he had been deceived by Phil Coulson into killing the leaders of HYDRA for S.H.I.E.L.D., crippling the organization almost beyond repair. Horrified at his incredible blunder, Bakshi offered no resistance as he was taken away by Morse and Hunter to be handed over to General Talbot.
Bakshi would not remain in captivity for long as he was later freed by Grant Ward and Agent 33. Taking him back to their hotel room, they subjected Bakshi to the Faustus Method, the same brainwashing technique that Bakshi had used on Agent 33 previously. With Bakshi now under his control, Ward took him to S.H.I.E.L.D. where he made a deal with Coulson to infiltrate HYDRA. They developed a plan in which Bakshi would have a meeting with Doctor List so they could learn the location of Baron Strucker. Ward and Agent 33 helped Bakshi infiltrate HYDRA and instructed him to act as he normally would. It was decided that Mike Peterson would go with him to act as his bodyguard, despite the fact List had ordered Bakshi to come alone, Ward assured Coulson however Bakshi could persuade List to ignore the detail as he could be highly persuasive.
Bakshi, with Deathlok posing as his bodyguard, were able to meet Doctor List aboard his private plane. Bakshi was able to talk his way in and convinced List that he had nothing to do with the deaths of the other heads of HYDRA, claiming that he was captured by the US Government and was only recently saved by the HYDRA war machine Deathlok. As per Ward's instructions, he then offered to give Deathlok to List for his experiments. He then listened to how List had been tracking a teleporter who was transporting gifted people around the world and how they wished to capture him and learn what had given him his gifts.
While onroute to Strucker, List's scientists intercepted a signal informing them of the teleporter's location. Bakshi travelled with List and his men to Milwaukee to capture him. Bakshi led the attack, ordering his men, including Deathlok to capture the teleporter alive. The team was attacked by Calvin Zabo and a team of Inhumans as well as Coulson and his small unit of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Though the teleporter was not present, Bakshi then seemingly double-crossed Coulson and Ward when he came across Peterson and an Inhuman named Lincoln Campbell fighting. Bakshi ordered his men to capture them both. This, however, was an elaborate ploy to get Bakshi inside HYDRA's base, gather intel on them for Ward, and allow easy access for Coulson's team. When the team arrived, Bakshi killed the guards at the entrance and allowed the team inside.
Death[]
Bakshi is disintegrated by a Splinter Bomb
In the episode "The Dirty Half Dozen", Bakshi followed Ward and Jemma Simmons through HYDRA's Arctic base as they searched for Deathlok. Simmons, bitter towards Ward for his past betrayals, decided to try and kill him out of revenge. She had obtained a HYDRA Splinter Bomb and threw it at Ward while his back was turned to her. Bakshi noticed this and cried out, leaping into the path of the weapon. The Splinter Bomb dug into Bakshi's torso and he died screaming as his body disintegrated into dust.