LatonyaOconnor at 15:51, 13 January 2026

2026-01-13T15:51:36Z

New page

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}
{{short description|Indian Air Force officer}}
{{For|the film|Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl}}
{{Infobox military person
| honorific_prefix = [[Flight Lieutenant]]
| name = Gunjan Saxena
| honorific_suffix =
| native_name = {{lang|hi|गुंजन सक्सेना}}
| image =
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_date = {{birth year and age|1974|08}}{{sfn|Saxena|Nirvan|2020|loc=Chapter 1}}/{{birth year and age|1975}}{{sfn|Indian Express|2020}}
| alma_mater = [[Hansraj College]]<br>[[Delhi University]]
| death_date =
| birth_place =
| death_place =
| placeofburial =
| placeofburial_label =
| placeofburial_coordinates = 
| nickname =
| birth_name =
| allegiance = {{flag|India|23px}}
| branch = {{air force|India|23px}}
| serviceyears = 1994–2004
| rank = [[File:Indian IAF OF-2.svg|24px]] [[Flight Lieutenant]]
| servicenumber =
| unit =
| commands =
| battles = [[Kargil War]]
| battles_label =
| awards =
| relations =
| laterwork =
| signature =
| website =
}}
'''Gunjan Saxena''' (born 1975){{sfn|Indian Express|2020}}{{efn|Per her autobiography she was born in August 1974.{{sfn|Saxena|Nirvan|2020|loc=Chapter 1}}}} is an [[Indian Air Force]] officer and former helicopter pilot. She joined the IAF in 1994 and is a 1999 [[Kargil War]] veteran. She is the first woman to fly in a combat zone during the Kargil War. One of her main roles during the Kargil War was to evacuate the wounded from Kargil, transport supplies, and assist in surveillance. 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.

The movie, ''Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl'' was released in 2020 by Dharma Productions. 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.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Talwar|first=Shikha|date=9 June 2020|title=This is the real story of Saxena, the Kargil girl who has inspired Janhvi Kapoor's next film|url=https://www.gqindia.com/get-smart/content/this-is-the-real-story-of-gunjan-saxena-the-kargil-girl-who-has-inspired-janhvi-kapoors-next-film|access-date=1 August 2020|website=GQ India|language=en-IN}}</ref> Her father [[Lieutenant Colonel]] Anup Kumar Saxena and brother Lieutenant Colonel Anshuman both served in the [[Indian Army]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Javaid |first=Arfa |date=10 June 2020 |title=Gunjan Saxena Biography: Early Life, Education, Career, Awards and Unknown Facts |url=https://www.jagranjosh.com/general-knowledge/gunjan-saxena-biography-1591793632-1 |access-date=1 August 2020 |website=Jagranjosh.com}}</ref> Saxena went to study anthropology at [[Hansraj College]], [[University of Delhi]],{{sfn|Saxena|Nirvan|2020|loc=Chapter 1}} but ultimately graduated with a [[Bachelor of Science]] degree in [[physics]].{{sfn|Banerji|2016}}

==Indian Air Force service==
Saxena joined the Indian Air Force (IAF) in 1994,{{sfn|Saxena|Nirvan|2020|loc=Chapter 1}}{{sfn|Indian Express|2020}}{{sfn|Pandey|2020}} and was one of 26 women who became pilots in 1996. This was the fourth batch of women air force trainees for the IAF.<ref name=":3" /> Saxena's first posting was in [[Udhampur]], as part of the 132 Forward Area Control as a [[Flying officer]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Menon |first=Smitha |date=16 June 2020 |title=The story of Gunjan Saxena, one of India's first women in combat |url=https://www.cntraveller.in/story/real-story-gunjan-saxena-one-india-first-woman-combat-netflix-janhavi-kapoor/ |url-status=dead |access-date=1 August 2020 |website=Condé Nast Traveller India |language=en-IN}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Rawat |first=Rachna Bisht |date=17 July 2019 |title=Meet Flying Officer Gunjan Saxena, India's only woman warrior in the Kargil war |url=https://scroll.in/article/930744/meet-flying-officer-gunjan-saxena-indias-only-woman-warrior-in-the-kargil-war |access-date=1 August 2020 |website=Scroll.in |language=en-US |quote="She has attained the glory of being in the two woman involved in the Kargil War."}}</ref>

Flying officer Saxena was 24 years old when she flew during the Kargil War and was stationed in [[Srinagar]].<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":4" /> In the Kargil War, as part of [[Operation Vijay (1999)|Operation Vijay]], apart from evacuating the wounded,{{Efn|Indian official figures for Indians killed in the Kargil War is 527.|name=|group=}} 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.<ref name=":3" /> She had to deal with makeshift landing grounds, heights of 13,000 to 18,000 feet and enemy fire.<ref name=":2" /> 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.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":4" /> Saxena was the only woman in the [[Indian Armed Forces]] who flew into war zones in the Kargil War.<ref name=":4" /> In 2004, her career as a helicopter pilot ended after serving for eight years.<ref name=":3" /> Permanent commissions were not available during her time in service.<ref name=":4" />

==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 named Pragya.<ref name=":3" />

== In popular culture ==
* A chapter in the book ''Kargil Untold Stories From The War'' by Rachna Bisht Rawat focuses on Gunjan Saxena.<ref name=":2" />
* Gunjan Saxena's autobiography, titled ''The Kargil Girl'', co-written by 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.{{cn|date=January 2023}} “''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 ''[[Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl]]'' released on Netflix is inspired by her life.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Bhadani |first=Priyanka |date=26 July 2020 |title=Gunjan Saxena never thought in her wildest dreams she would inspire a film |url=https://www.theweek.in/news/entertainment/2020/07/26/gunjan-saxena-never-thought-in-her-wildest-dreams-she-would-inspire-a-film.html |access-date=1 August 2020 |website=The Week |language=en}}</ref> Saxena is portrayed by [[Janhvi Kapoor]], while the film was produced by [[Dharma Productions]] and [[Zee Studios]]. The film portrays an inspiring story of her resilience.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Need A Powerful Dose Of Motivation? Watch Gunjan Saxena on Netflix {{!}} Movie Review |url=https://www.ekwanderingastronome.com/2026/01/gunjan-saxena-review-best-bollywood-motivational-movie-on-netflix.html |access-date=2026-01-13}}</ref> Saxena's father and brother are played by [[Pankaj Tripathi]] and [[Angad Bedi]], respectively.<ref>{{Cite web|date=25 February 2019|title=Angad Bedi joins the star cast of Gunjan Saxena's biopic, Kargil Girl|url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/bollywood/angad-bedi-joins-star-cast-gunjan-saxenas-biopic-kargil-girl/|access-date=1 August 2020|website=Bollywood Hungama|language=en}}</ref>

==Media inaccuracies==
After the film was released, there was confusion related to some facts about Saxena, due to the film's dramatisation of events.{{sfn|Pandey|2020}} In an article in NDTV she clarified some of them:<ref>{{Cite web|last=Saxena|first=Gunjan|date=17 August 2020|title=Blog: "Won't Let Anyone Take Away My Achievements": Gunjan Saxena On Movie Row|url=https://www.ndtv.com/blog/won-t-let-anyone-take-away-my-achievements-gunjan-saxena-on-movie-row-2280730|access-date=2020-08-18|website=NDTV}}</ref>

{{Quote|text=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.| author = Gunjan Saxena |title=| source = [[NDTV]] {{full citation needed|date=July 2025}} }}

{{Quote|text=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.|author= Gunjan Saxena |title=| source = [[NDTV]] {{full citation needed|date=July 2025}} }}

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

===Works cited===
* {{Cite news |last=Banerji |first=Rishabh |date=26 July 2016 |title=The Untold Story Of The First Women Warriors Of Kargil - Gunjan Saxena And Srividya Rajan |url=https://www.indiatimes.com/news/india/the-untold-story-of-the-first-women-warriors-of-kargil-gunjan-saxena-and-srividya-rajan-258983.html |access-date=25 February 2025 |work=[[India Times]] |language=en-IN}}
* {{cite news |author=Indian Express |date=14 August 2020 |title=Watched 'Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl'? Here's the story of the woman it is based on |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/who-is/who-is-gunjan-saxena-6553605/ |work=[[Indian Express]] |access-date=2020-08-20}}
* {{cite book |last1=Saxena |first1=Gunjan |last2=Nirvan |first2=Kiran |date=2020 |title=The Kargil Girl: An Autobiography |publisher=[[Penguin Books]]}}
* {{cite news |last=Pandey |first=Geeta |date=20 August 2020 |title=Gunjan Saxena: India female pilot's war biopic flies into a row |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-53778420 |work=[[BBC News]]}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saxena, Gunjan}}

[[Category:1975 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Lucknow]]
[[Category:Indian Air Force officers]]
[[Category:Indian military aviators]]
[[Category:Indian women aviators]]
[[Category:Indian women in war]]
[[Category:Women air force personnel]]
[[Category:Hansraj College alumni]]
[[Category:Women helicopter pilots]]

Gunjan Saxena - Revision history

LatonyaOconnor at 15:51, 13 January 2026