IC 814: The Kandar Hijack tells the true story of an Indian Airlines flight that was taken over by terrorists.
Find out more about Captain Sharan Dev, the real life hero of the Netflix series.
Captain Sharan Dev is a character based on Captain Devi Sharan.
He was the pilot of Indian Airlines Flight 814 that was hijacked in 1999.
It was on its way to Delhi when five masked men took over the plane shortly after it left Indian air space.
Sharan has been widely hailed as a hero, after showing remarkable composure and leadership during what happened.
He spoke to the New York Times shortly after and described his slightly unorthodox ways of handling things.
The hero pilot told them: “There were two terrorists standing behind me in the cockpit, and whatever I used to communicate to my co-pilot or the crew, they used to understand everything.
“So, I decided to keep certain things to myself.
“When the Lahore Air Traffic Control (ATC) refused permission to land the aircraft, I made a plan to pretend to crash land the aircraft so that it would put pressure on them to switch on the runway lights and allow us to land there.
“Believe me, my plan worked, and I immediately got a communication from the ATC that the runway is open, and we safely landed there.”
The plane refuelled there before the hijackers made Sharan complete a take-off to head further West.
The ordeal lasted several days, but Captain Sharan tried to calm the tension by engaging with the hijackers – even joking with them and nicknaming one of them “Burger”.
He said afterwards that this meant the hostages stayed calm despite what was happening.
Sharan was widely praised by the Indian Government and public once things were over.
Of the 190 people on board the flight, all but one survived the hijacking.
Netflix drama series IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack is a limited series based on the real life hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814.
Vijay Varma plays the role of Captain Sharan Dev.
The viewers must know this story that has never been told inside out before.”
Anubhav Sinha
Hijackers took over the flight after it left Kathmandu in Nepal on December 24, 1999.
It was on its way to Delhi in India, but the masked terrorists made the pilot fly it to several different locations before it finally landed in Kandahar, in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
The motive for the hijacking was to try to secure the release of a number of Pakistani prisoners who were held in India.
It sparked an international crisis, with the plane spending seven days in the control of the terrorists crossing several borders.
The director of the series, Anubhav Sinha, wanted viewers to understand how it felt to be on board as well as what was happening on the ground.
He said: “We met officials engaged in running the rescue mission from Delhi, and passengers and the crew told us the story inside the aircraft.
“The viewers must know this story that has never been told inside out before.”
IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack is available to stream now on Netflix.
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