IC 814 - The Kandahar Hijack: What book is the Netflix series based on?
The series directed by Anubhav Sinha is based on the book 'Flight Into Fear: The Captain's Story,' the captain's gripping account of the seven days he and the passengers barely survived inside the hijacked plane.
IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack, Netflix's latest series is based on a true event that took place on December 24, 1999. The series directed by Anubhav Sinha is based on the book 'Flight Into Fear: The Captain's Story,' a gripping retelling of the eight days the captain and the passengers barely survived inside the hijacked plane. The event itself has gone down in aviation history as one of the longest hijackings, and reportedly the longest ever in India. Captain Devi Sharan, 37 at the time, later co-authored the book with Srinjoy Chowdhury, which was released in 2000.
What book is Netflix's IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack series based on?
Credit: Flipkart | The cover of 'Flight Into Fear: The Captain's Story'
The book Flight Into Fear: The Captain's Story was written by Captain Devi Sharan and co-authored by Srinjoy Chowdhury. It was published by Penguin Books Ltd and released on April 27, 2000. In it, Sharan recounts the horrors of the event that lasted eight days and pushed the limits of human endurance.
Sharan revealed he was meant to go on a family vacation but found himself on the Delhi-bound flight from Kathmandu instead. The horror that ensued left him a changed man forever. Various accounts reveal how he continued to maintain his composure given the circumstances hoping to bring home the 188 passengers on the flight.
Recalling his experience while writing the book, Chowdhury wrote on X:
Writing about the IC-814 hijacking was difficult enough. My father was critically ill. My daughter arrived after a difficult pregnancy. Then, 15 years after the book came out began a series of discussions. Finally, thanks to Sarita Patil and Netflix, we¡¯re home and dry. Thank you pic.twitter.com/karj6xe2jk
¡ª srinjoyc (@srinjoyc1) August 29, 2024
IC 814: The real story in brief
The Delhi-bound IC 814 Indian Airlines (now a division of Air India Limited) flight scheduled to land in Kathmandu was hijacked by five terrorists on December 24, 1999. Their demand? The release of 36 prisoners including Maulana Masood Azhar, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, and $200 million in cash.
The hijackers wanted Captain Devi Sharan to land the plane carrying 188 passengers and crew members in Kabul but were told there wasn't enough fuel. They then demanded that the plane be refuelled at Lahore airport, another plan that didn't come to be since Pakistani authorities denied the request.
The plane finally made its way to Amritsar where it waited for 50 whole minutes, an opportunity that was missed by authorities. The delay was trigger enough for the hijackers who forced Captain Devi Sharan to then fly the plane to Dubai for refuelling.
It was in Dubai where, after much negotiation between the terrorists and authorities in UAE 27 passengers were released as was the body of Rupin Katyal.
The remaining passengers watched with bated breath as the plane made its way to Kandahar in Afghanistan. They stayed there for the next six days not knowing if the next moment would be their last. With the Taliban acting as the liaison, Indian authorities negotiated with the hijackers and 155 passengers were released as were the three terrorists,
Maulana Masood Azhar, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar.
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Tanya Sirohi is the Trending section lead at Indiatimes. She likes to write on a range of topics including viral stories, UFO sightings and exploring life on Mars.
