Gunjan Saxena

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Flight Lieutenant

Gunjan Saxena
Native name
Gunjan
Born1975 (age 48–49) [1]
AllegianceFlag of India.svg  India
Service/branchAir Force Ensign of India (2023).svg  Indian Air Force
Years of service1996–2004
Rank Indian IAF OF-2.svg Flight Lieutenant
Battles/wars Kargil War

Gunjan Saxena (born 1975) [1] is an Indian Air Force (IAF) officer and former helicopter pilot. She joined the IAF in 1996 and is a 1999 Kargil War veteran. [2] [3] [4] She is one of the first women to fly in a combat zone. One of her main roles during the Kargil War was to evacuate the wounded from Kargil, transport supplies and assist in surveillance. [2] She would go on to be part of operations to evacuate over 900 troops, both injured and deceased, from Kargil. In 2004, after serving as a pilot for eight years, her career as a helicopter pilot ended; permanent commissions for women were not available during her time. [4] [5]

Contents

The 2020 Bollywood film Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl is inspired by her life. [2]

Her autobiography, The Kargil Girl, was released along with the movie by Penguin Publishers, which she had co-written with author-duo Kiran Nirvan.

Early life

Saxena was born into an Army family. [6] Her father, Lieutenant Colonel Anup Kumar Saxena and brother Lieutenant Colonel Anshuman both served in the Indian Army. [4] Saxena graduated with a bachelor of science degree in physics from Hansraj College, University of Delhi in New Delhi.

Indian Air Force service

Saxena was one of six women who joined the Indian Air Force (IAF) as a pilot in 1996. This was the fourth batch of women air force trainees for the IAF. [4] Saxena's first posting was in Udhampur, as part of the 132 Forward Area Control as a flight lieutenant. [3] [5]

Flying Officer Saxena was 24 years old when she flew during the Kargil War and was stationed in Srinagar. [3] [5] In the Kargil War, as part of Operation Vijay, apart from evacuating the wounded [lower-alpha 1] , she helped transport supplies to troops in the forward areas of Dras and Batalik. She also was assigned to conduct surveillance, such as mapping enemy positions. [4] She had to deal with makeshift landing grounds, heights of 13,000 to 18,000 feet and enemy fire. [3] She was one of the ten pilots based in Srinagar who flew hundreds of sorties during the war, evacuating over 900 casualties, wounded and killed. [3] [5] Saxena was the only woman in the Indian Armed Forces who flew into war zones in the Kargil War. [5] In 2004, her career as a helicopter pilot ended after serving for eight years. [4] Permanent commissions were not available during her time in service. [5]

Personal life

Saxena's husband, Wing Commander Gautam Narain, is also an Indian Air Force pilot. He is the pilot of IAF Mi-17 helicopters. He also served as an instructor at the National Defence Academy, which is the first tri-service academy in the world. The couple have a daughter. [4]

A chapter in the book Kargil Untold Stories From The War by Rachna Bisht Rawat focuses on Gunjan Saxena. [3]

Gunjan Saxena's autobiography, titled The Kargil Girl, co-written with author-duo Kiran Nirvan, was released by Penguin Publishers along with the movie. The book garnered praise and five-star reviews by print and electronic media including BBC India, CNN Network 18, Forbes India, Hindustan Times, The Tribune, etc.[ citation needed ] “Never jingoistic but measured and matter-of-fact, the book makes for thrilling reading with vividly described, moving, cinematic and enthralling scenes” is what Hindustan Times said about the book.

The 2020 Bollywood film, released on Netflix Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl is inspired by her life. [2] Saxena is portrayed by Janhvi Kapoor while the film has been produced by Dharma Productions and Zee Studios. Saxena's's father and brother are played by Pankaj Tripathi and Angad Bedi respectively in other popular roles. [7]

Media inaccuracies

After the film was released, there was confusion related to some facts about Saxena. In an article in NDTV she clarified some of them: [8]

I was lucky and blessed to have so many firsts to my name in my years with the IAF. To list a few -- first in the order of merit during my basic training and also in helicopter training, the first woman to fly in a combat zone (mentioned in the Limca Book of Records), the first 'BG' (a coveted flying category) among women helicopter pilots and the first woman officer to undergo the jungle and snow survival course. There are other small achievements, but those are not of much significance to my story right now.

— Gunjan Saxena, NDTV

Neither I nor the filmmakers ever claimed I was a "Shaurya Chakra" awardee. After Kargil, I received the "Shaurya Veer" award from a civilian organisation in Uttar Pradesh. A certain section of the internet news possibly turned "Veer" into "Chakra". This has been clarified many times during my media interactions for the film's promotions.

— Gunjan Saxena, NDTV

Notes

  1. ↑ Indian official figures for Indians killed in the Kargil War is 527.

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References

  1. 1 2 "Watched 'Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl'? Here's the story of the woman it is based on". Indian Express . Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Bhadani, Priyanka (26 July 2020). "Gunjan Saxena never thought in her wildest dreams she would inspire a film". The Week. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Menon, Smitha (16 June 2020). "The story of Gunjan Saxena, one of India's first women in combat". Condé Nast Traveller India. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Javaid, Arfa (10 June 2020). "Gunjan Saxena Biography: Early Life, Education, Career, Awards and Unknown Facts". Jagranjosh.com. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rawat, Rachna Bisht (17 July 2019). "Meet Flying Officer Gunjan Saxena, India's only woman warrior in the Kargil war". Scroll.in. Retrieved 1 August 2020. She has attained the glory of being in the two woman involved in the Kargil War.
  6. ↑ Talwar, Shikha (9 June 2020). "This is the real story of Saxena, the Kargil girl who has inspired Janhvi Kapoor's next film". GQ India. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  7. ↑ "Angad Bedi joins the star cast of Gunjan Saxena's biopic, Kargil Girl". Bollywood Hungama. 25 February 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  8. ↑ Saxena, Gunjan (17 August 2020). "Blog: "Won't Let Anyone Take Away My Achievements": Gunjan Saxena On Movie Row". NDTV. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
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