Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], August 13 : Actor Abhay Verma on Thursday paid an emotional tribute to late Indian Air Force officer RS Dhaliwal, whom he portrays in Netflix's series Operation Safed Sagar.
Dhaliwal served with No. 17 Squadron during the 1999 Kargil War. He became one of the youngest fighter pilots to fly risky night-strike missions in high mountains.
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In his post, Abhay recalled meeting Dhaliwal's daughter while preparing for his role.
"Dhali sir, You're my hero. A real fighter. I met your colleagues while shooting and they have immense respect for you and how courageous you were. They hugged me tight and told me endless stories about the force that you were. Your courage, your determination keeps the soul of Indian Air Force alive..& mine too. I wish you were here to see how everyone is celebrating you and what you did to protect our families not thinking once about yours," he wrote.
"Saubhagya mera ki aapke naam ke saath mera naam jud paaya. Met your daughter, a bright beautiful girl whom i felt a strange connection when we shook hands. I felt thats the closest i can be to you. Hum dono hee ek dusre ki aankho mei aapko dhoondh rahe they & then we both swallowed our tears and talked for a bit. Bas ek malaal rahega.. Kaash aapse mil paata. Lekin mujhe yakeen hai aapka aashirwaad saath rahega. Jai hind sir," he added.
Operation Safed Sagar follows the journey of some of the Indian Air Force's youngest officers during the Kargil War.The series centres on the Golden Arrows Squadron, exploring the immense courage, pressure, and sacrifice involved in carrying out missions at extreme altitudes. Beyond the aerial missions, however, the story also delves into the human experiences behind the operation.
Directed by Oni Sen, created by Abhijeet Singh Parmar and Kushal Srivastava, and produced by Sanjay Routray and Sarita Patil from Matchbox Shots LLP and Mehboob Pal Singh Brar from Feel Good Films, the series features Abhay alongside Siddharth, Jimmy Shergill, Prajakta Koli, Adil Hussain, Mihir Ahuja, Taaruk Raina, Arnav Bhasin, and Amrita Bagchi.