Lucknow Press
Kandahar hijacking real story: Making a film on a story that the audience already knows is risky for the director-producer. Will people watch it, will they like it or not? Will we be able to make them feel it? IC814 ‘The Kandahar Hijack’ web series is on a subject on which a film had already been made, yet Anubhav Sinha took the risk. And as veteran actors Pankaj Kapoor and Naseeruddin Shah, who worked in the film, say, it will become a document for the coming generation. Through this film, they will be able to return to that time when people of the country could not sleep properly for a week Had found.
The story of the Kandahar hijack
Under what circumstances a plane flying from Kathmandu gets hijacked, how RAW (Indian intelligence agency) keeps an eye on the activities of ISI and by the time the information climbs up the ladder and reaches the top level, the plane is already under the control of terrorists. The date was 24 December 1999, the plane was supposed to fly from Tribhuvan International Airport to Indira Gandhi International Airport Delhi but it first went to Amritsar, Lahore, Dubai and then landed in Afghanistan’s land Kandahar.
The captain’s neck was bruised…
This web series is based on the book ‘Flight Into Fear: The Captain’s Story’ written by 37-year-old Captain Devi Sharan who was flying the plane. Director Anubhav Sinha has told that the gun was kept on the captain’s neck for so long that it caused a wound due to rubbing. That scar is still there. When Anubhav Sinha spoke to Devi Sharan for making the film and asked him what was the most relieving moment and what was the most heartbreaking moment.
The captain told him that when the plane was landing in Amritsar, he was feeling relieved from within that now he has come to his own country. Now everything will be fine but the most heartbreak was when the plane had to fly from Amritsar in just 45 minutes.
What is special in web series
Well, you can relive that horrific incident of 25 years ago. If you were born after that and have a subscription, then this is a great web series to spend the weekend. Consider it a docu-drama because film students will see amazing visual effects along with editing skills in it. In such films, many things have to be made computer generated and there is also a risk of it becoming fantasy instead of real. But the ‘anubhav’ of Anubhav has come in handy.
In the web series, when the plane is in the sky, watching the hijacked plane flying amidst the glowing clouds and the blinking red light takes you to that plane and makes you sit inside it. In the actual pictures that came at that time, it was seen that there was a lot of dirt inside. The director has made such small problems real with his imagination. When the airhostess has to sit next to a stinking toilet while holding her nose. Once she even goes to clean it but vomits, then the captain gets down to fix the choked toilet. Anubhav Sinha has similarly made the situation of the war room thrilling with his imagination.
That’s a scene
Dia Mirza and her journalist’s role as a news editor may have been small but it brings forward a very important aspect seriously. How the passenger list given to the media then had one name missing. Who was that person who boarded the plane and whose name was hidden from the public. The reporter wanted to publish this news but the editor stopped it in the interest of the country.
A docu-drama without any boredom
In between, when real video clips are shown and real and reel pictures are presented in such a way that everything looks real. It seems that the audience is seeing everything happening in front of their eyes, this is the success of the director. Later, the actors of the web series have also praised this thing in a promotional video. By the way, docu-drama sometimes becomes boring.
You will also understand the political situation
Those who were able to understand politics at that time will remember how Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s government had to deal with one terrorist incident after another. It was a coalition government, so there was a delay in consulting many parties before taking a decision. That dilemma has been shown in an excellent way in this web series. How the Indian government had to release three dreaded terrorists to save the lives of about 200 of its people, who later attacked again and shed the blood of Indians.
Where did it go wrong?
The web series brings back memories of that period very seriously and people understand that it was a dangerous chapter from the point of view of India’s national security. There was less contact with the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, ISI was more active in Kathmandu and our government proved helpless. Experts even believe that after Kargil, due to incidents like Kandahar and then the attack on Parliament, the Vajpayee government had to face defeat in 2004. It is a different matter that the UPA government was also a coalition government and during its time too the 2008 Mumbai attack took place in which questions are raised on the government’s response.
Masood Azhar, whom the Indian government had released in exchange for its own people, is the head of Jaish-e-Mohammed and even today he is sitting in Pakistan and plotting against India. The terrorists had tried to free Masood Azhar who is in jail earlier also but in 1999 they succeeded in entering the plane with explosives and weapons. This was a big lapse in security. In fact, after the 9/11 attacks, air security was strengthened all over the world.
The entire shoot of the captain is in the cockpit but…
You will find Vijay Verma’s work in the web series to be amazing. In the role of the captain, he remained in the cockpit the entire time but manages to keep the audience captivated. His scenes were mostly shot in chroma and before that he went to the cockpit simulator and learned the work of a captain. He also considers the role of Captain Devi Sharan to be the most important. After playing the role, he said that the captain tried his best to ensure that the plane and the passengers remained safe. He also listened to the hijackers and tried to buy time wherever possible so that the agencies could do their work.
what to say about pahwa
Manoj Pahwa will be seen in an important role in the negotiation team. The way he went to Kandahar and dealt with the terrorist sitting in the cockpit one to one will bring a smile on your face. Chief ji, what will you do with so much money… India is a very big country… Chief ji, you look tired, should I send you tea? Such scripting will make you feel different. That moment must have been such when we had to free our people and not surrender completely to the terrorists.
‘Roja’ actor is freezing
Yes, it feels good to see ‘Roja’ actor Arvind Swamy in a Hindi film. Those who have seen the film Roja will easily recognize him. And yes, it is very well shown how a South Indian officer must have trouble understanding the meaning of some Hindi words while working in the Hindi belt. When he asks what is this ‘chatte batte’. There is a scene where he is asked that you are from the South, you must prefer coffee?
Overall, you can watch this web series with the whole family to remember that horrific incident and have a great time. Also remember that people were standing with posters till the airport to free their people. 7 days later when the special flight landed in Delhi, then there was some relief. At the end of the film, when Pankaj Kapoor in the role of a minister salutes the captain, you will be filled with enthusiasm. Pankaj Kapoor himself suggested the director to do this scene. Vijay Verma thanks him for this because this is the only scene in which he got a chance to come in the frame with the legendary actor.
As far as ratings are concerned, such films deserve to be given 5 stars because such films should continue to be made.
