IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack Real Story: All You Need To Know About Vijay Varma's Web Show Based On True Events

IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack has created a buzz ever since the markers released the trailer and poster of the series. It stars Vijay Varma, Pankaj Kapur, Naseeruddin Shah, Arvind Swamy, Dia Mirza, Patralekhaa, Amrita Puri, Anupam Tripathi, Kumud Mishra, and Manoj Pahwa in pivotal roles. The thrilling series it is based on the infamous hijacking of an Indian Airlines Airbus.

Real Life Story Of Kandahar Hijack 1999:

Five terrorists hijacked the Indian Airlines Flight 814, commonly known as IC 814, 25 years ago. The Airbus A300 was en route from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, to Delhi airport, India on December 24, 1999.

The plane was commandeered by five Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM) operatives from Pakistan shortly after entering Indian airspace. The hijackers directed their roots towards Kandahar, Afghanistan, and in between the aircraft was flown to a series of locations: Amritsar, Lahore, and across the Persian Gulf to Dubai.

Here's What Happened During The Kandahar Hijack:

The hijack, which lasted for eight days from 24 December 1999 – 31 December 1999, involved Captain Devi Sharan, First Officer Rajinder Kumar, and Flight Engineer Anil Kumar Jaggia.

The flight had 191 passangers, 176 (including 5 hijackers), 15 crew members, out of which 17 were injured, and 25-year-old male hostage was stabbed by the hijackers multiple times, before the aircraft landed in Al Minhad Air Base, Dubai.

India discussed their approach to negotiations. However, the Taliban officials initially refused to allow Indian special forces to attempt a covert operation.

Hijackers Demand:

Taliban officials made demands of releasing 36 prisoners, the body of HuM founder Sajjad Afghani and US$200 million, but was ultimately reduced during negotiations to three prisoners:

*Maulana Masood Azhar (involved in the 2019 Pulwama Attack)

*Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh (Known for the 1994 Kidnappings of Western tourists in India, involved in the September 11 attacks in the United States)

*Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar (Key role in training Islamic militants)

Who Is Captain Devi Sharan?

Captain Devi Sharan, is the saviour of the story in the 1999 hijack, which is portrayed by Vijay Varma in the Netflix series. He was about to go on a family vacation after the fight, but his life took a different turn because of the hijack.

The brave hero also detailed titled Flight Into Fear, co-written with Srinjoy Chowdhary. In the book, he shared his experiences and battles that he faced during the hijack.

Vijay Varma, who played the character of Captain Sharan in the series, shared his first meeting experience with the pilot on Instagram. Sharing a picture with him, he wrote. "Real and Reel Captain Sharan. When I first met the captain... I was taken in by his pleasant smile and his simplicity... and then I saw a scar on his neck.. I asked him about it... he simply and politely said 'woh hijackers ki gun 7 din tak yahi ragadti rahi toh wound ho gaya tha jo heal nahi hua' (the hijackers' gun rubbed against my neck for seven days, causing a wound that never healed.) I froze. He smiled. I knew I was talking to a real hero."

IC814 The Kandahar Hijack is directed by Anubhav Sinha, and produced by Matchbox Shots, Benaras Mediaworks. It is slated to stream from August 29 on Netflix.