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Neerja Bhanot

by Sohni Singh from San Diego, California in United States

“A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself” (Joseph Campbell). Neerja Bhanot is a perfect example of someone who gave her life to something bigger than herself. She sacrificed her safety to save the lives of others. Heroes show courage even in the toughest times and are kind to everyone. Bhanot’s act of courage on Pan Am Flight 73 proved her to be a heroic figure because she died saving the lives of hundreds of people, inspired generations of Indian citizens to be courageous when faced with a dilemma, and encouraged individuals to be compassionate with all people, even strangers.  

Neerja Bhanot was born on September 7, 1963, in Chandigarh, Punjab, India. When she was two, she and her parents moved to Bombay. Bhanot grew up with her two brothers, uncle, and parents. As a child, she was athletic, intelligent, and empathetic. Her personality stayed the same throughout her life. She finished her schooling at Bombay Scottish School and went on to graduate from St Xavier's College, Mumbai. After college, she wanted to be a model and had a modeling career for about a year. Soon after, she decided she wanted to become a flight attendant because she thought it would be a perfect chance to build her confidence (Bagri 2). Bhanot was one of the youngest women in India to become a flight attendant, at just twenty-two years old. In the fourth year of her career, she was a flight attendant on Pan Am 73, which was hijacked. Thanks to her, over 500 lives were saved. Even though she was killed that day, her legacy will not be forgotten.

138449The plane that was hijacked in Karachi, Pakistanhttps://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Flight_73.jpgBhanot was a hero who sacrificed her life to save the lives of more than 500 passengers (Bhanot “The Neerja I Knew”) on that doomed plane. When Pan Am 73 was departing to Karachi, Pakistan, terrorists who hated Americans took over the plane with intent to kill all of the Americans on board. The terrorists wanted all of the Americans’ passports and ordered Bhanot to collect them. She knew that she could not let these forty-two American passengers die, so she secretly hid the passports under the passengers’ seats: “She managed to save all those American passengers who were targeted by the terrorists” (Mohan 2). Bhanot had the choice to simply let the American passengers perish, but she decided to take a risk and hide their passports from the terrorists to keep them safe. The hijacking lasted for two days. Towards the end of the second day, Bhanot realized that she had to find a way to end the standoff, so she ordered the other flight attendants to distract the hijackers and slip emergency exit plans to the Americans (Bagri 3). She then assisted as many passengers as she could off the plane as the terrorists were distracted, resulting in the survival of many passengers. Bhanot took a big risk by exiting the passengers, but she knew she had to save as many people as she could. Bhanot proved herself a hero by protecting the lives of vulnerable passengers on that flight. 

138451Picture of Bhanot's mother after her death https://vimeo.com/190679715Furthermore, Bhanot inspired generations of Indian people to be courageous when faced with a dilemma. Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the assessment that something else is more important than fear” (Roosevelt). She is one of those people who personifies this statement. When the plane was first hijacked, “The first thing Neerja did when the terrorists entered, was to tell the American pilots” (Murthy 4). Bhanot knew that she should ensure that the American pilots escaped immediately. She was certain that she could have been killed if the terrorists were to find out, but she remained brave. When Bhanot told the pilots about the hijacking, they escaped unnoticed and reached the main control tower, notifying airport security. As she states in her interview: “My first instinct was to open the wing exit and slip out with as many passengers as I could, but I realized that this would leave the rest of the passengers vulnerable” (Bhanot 2). Bhanot knew that she could not panic or show fear; otherwise, the passengers would be in danger. She took a short break and recalled the time that her dad had told her to stand tall in life-or-death situations. This memory gave her the confidence she needed to calmly face the terrorists and find a logical solution to save lives. Khusi Bagri wrote about how Bhanot is a role model because of Bhanot’s tremendous courage: “Just the way she stayed strong throughout that entire hijacking really makes her a role model to me” (Bagri 3). Bhanot’s acts of courage on the flight make her a heroic person.  

138452Ashoka Chakra Award given in honor of Neerja Bhanothttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ashoka_Chakra_ribbon.svgBhanot also encourages Indian citizens to be compassionate with all people, even strangers. She knew that in every crisis, people tend to panic: “She managed to keep every passenger calm and stable throughout the hijacking” (Melanie 4). She made sure that every passenger remained calm so they would not be shot. It takes a little compassion to calm one person, but calming numerous people in an emergency takes immense courage. Because of Bhanot’s history of having an abusive husband, she found it difficult to stand up for herself with those who opposed her. Once she became a flight attendant, however, she gained the confidence she needed to divorce him and started focusing on herself. Bhanot did not know anyone on that plane other than her fellow flight attendants, yet she showed kindness to every passenger: “Neerja stayed on the plane to help passengers escape, even though she could have been the first to leave. She was shot while shielding three children from the bullets being fired by the terrorists” (Kapoor 2). Bhanot showed compassion in this part of the hijacking because she could have easily left and saved herself when she had the opportunity. Bhanot helped those passengers escape and saved many innocent children from the bullets. Unfortunately, she was shot while protecting them. For Bhanot’s acts of compassion, she received the Ashoka Chakra Award. This award is given to India’s most honorable people. Bhanot was given this award for her fearlessness and kindness on the flight. Bhanot’s act of compassion influences the people of India to be kind to everyone. 

Andrea Randall once said, “Not all heroes wear capes” (Randall). Neerja Bhanot proves this statement to be true; she died saving the lives of hundreds of people, inspired generations of Indian people to be courageous when faced with a dilemma, and inspired individuals to be compassionate with all people, even strangers. Bhanot’s legacy will never be forgotten and her being able to save so many innocent lives is truly inspirational. I still remember watching the movie, Neerja, about Neerja Bhanot when I was ten and remember thinking that she is a role model for young women everywhere. Because of my own Indian background and my mom being from Chandigarh, I find her brave actions to be very important. Her confidence and courage on Flight 73 have made an impact on me. To this day, I look up to Neerja Bhanot and consider her a true hero. 

Bagri, Khusi. “Neerja Bhanot.” The MY HERO Project, 2016,   

          /neerja-bhanot-2.

Bhanot, Aneesh. The Neerja I Knew. United Books, 2016. https://www.goodreads.com 

         /book/show/29229149-the-neerja-i-knew.

Kapoor, Vandita. “The Incredible Story of Neerja Bhanot – Indian Flight Attendant    

          Who Saved 360 Lives.” The Better India, 10 Feb. 2016, 

          www.thebetterindia.com/40218/neerja-bhanot-flight-attendant-hijack-bravery/

Melaniee, Samantha, director. The Flight Attendant That Sacrificed Her Life For Her 

           Passengers: Neerja Bhanot, 2019, www.youtube.com/watch?v=krA10DoFrzE.

Mohan, Megha. “Inside a Hijack: The Unheard Stories of the Pan Am 73 Crew.” 

         Inside a Hijack: The Unheard Stories of the Pan Am 73 Crew, 2016 

           www.bbc.com /news/world-asia-35800683.

Murthy, Raja. “Remembering Neerja Bhanot and Pan Am Flight 73 to New York: 

           Opinion.” Asia Times, 19 Feb. 2016, www.asiatimes.com/2016/02/opinion 

           /remembering-neerja-bhanot-pan-am-flight-73-to-ny/.   

Page created on 2/11/2020 5:41:44 AM

Last edited 2/13/2020 11:51:37 PM

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