Who is Captain Devi Sharan? Check Details of IC 814 Flight Hijacking Here

When Air India Flight 814 took off from Kathmandu on that fateful night in late December, it was with passengers little to no idea of ​​the thrilling days ahead. Among the diverse group of passengers were newlyweds looking forward to the future, entrepreneurs seeking business deals, and holidaymakers looking forward to spending the festive season with their loved ones. At the controls were experienced Captain Devi Sharan, First Officer Rajinder Kumar, and Flight Engineer Anil Kumar Jagia. Five masked men with links to the terrorist group Al-Qaeda had a sinister plan for the plane and the 188 passengers on board. Over the next week, the world watched with bated breath as the plane was diverted from its intended destination. Through cunning manipulation and threats of violence, the hijackers took lives into their hands. This chilling story will go down as one of the longest-running such events in aviation history.

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Who is Captain Devi Sharan, the series Netflix is ​​making?

Captain Devi Sharan flew his final Christmas Eve flight before the new millennium, looking forward to embarking on a much-needed family vacation. However, fate had other plans. Throughout the eight-day hijacking ordeal, Captain Sharan is said to have maintained a calm disposition, acutely aware of the countless lives resting in his steady hands.

Air India Flight 814, with 188 passengers on board, was the longest-running airline hostage situation in history. The al-Qaeda-linked militants had a single goal: to secure the release of three notorious terrorists – Maulana Masood Azhar, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and Mushtaq Ahmed Zagar.

Captain Devi Sharan: The Hero of IC Flight 814 Hijacking

Captain Sharan recounted the entire unsettling experience in detail in his memoir, Flying Into Fear, with Srinijoy Choudhary, which later inspired director Anubhav Sinha to create the Netflix series IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack. In the book, Captain Sharan shares his ordeal, describing how he remained calm and tried to create a calm environment amid the ongoing uncertainty.

Actor Vijay Varma, who plays Captain Sharan in the Netflix series, spoke heartfeltly on social media about his first meeting with the real-life pilot. He wrote, “The real Captain Sharan. When I first met the Captain… I was drawn to his cheerful smile and simplicity… Then I saw a scar on his neck… I asked him about it… He simply and politely said, ‘The hijackers have ripped it open and it won’t heal.’ I froze. He smiled. I knew I was talking to a real-life hero. It was a great privilege to portray Captain Devi Sharan on screen. His efforts to save lives amidst chaos and fear were truly inspiring! This is a story of resilience and honour… about critical thinking and responsibility… about patience and hope and most of all… bravery. We salute you, Captain. 🫡 IC814 will be available to stream on Netflix from August 29th.”

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Details of the IC814 flight hijacking incident

On the evening of December 24, 1999, Air India Flight IC 814 took off from Kathmandu, Nepal, bound for New Delhi with 180 crew members and passengers on board. Among the passengers was Roberto Giori, then owner of De La Rue Giori, a leading global currency printing company.

Soon after takeoff, senior flight attendant Anil Sharma was startled by a masked man who told him the plane had been hijacked and claimed he had explosives on him. The hijackers instructed the pilot, Devi Sharan, to “fly west” and take the plane into Pakistani airspace. However, Pakistani air traffic control refused to allow the plane to land in Lahore due to low fuel. When the hijackers informed him of this, Captain Sharan was allowed to land in Amritsar, Punjab, to refuel.

Intelligence later revealed that the hijackers had purchased five tickets from Kathmandu, two first-class tickets purchased directly and three economy-class tickets purchased through a travel agency. Indian authorities believe that notorious Indian gangster and globally wanted terrorist Dawood Ibrahim, who is said to be based in the Middle East, helped the hijackers gain access to Kathmandu airport.

Passengers later recalled that the hijackers ordered the meals to be taken away from the plane, separated the men from the women and children, blindfolded them and threatened to blow them up with explosives if they did not obey.

IC 814 Network Series News

According to sources, the Indian government has summoned Netflix India’s content head following the controversy surrounding the web series IC 814 – The Kandahar Hijacking. The series is about the hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight by Pakistan-based terrorist group Harkat-ul-Mujahideen in 1999. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting summoned Netflix India head Monika Shergill after many social media users accused the show’s creators of deliberately changing the hijackers’ names to ‘Bhola’ and ‘Shankar’. Directed by Anubhav Sinha and Trishant Srivastava, the series is based on the book Flying into Fear: The Captain’s Story by Captain Devi Sharan and journalist Srinjoy Chowdhury. Naseeruddin Shah, Vijay Varma and Pankaj Kapur play key roles in the series.

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