As Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman comes home to India today, people all over the country are in a celebratory mood. From television studios to drawing rooms, over the past two days, the Wing Commander's bravery on Pakistani soil has been discussed at length. Varthaman's MiG-21 Bison jet was shot down on February 26 after the IAF fighter jets chased Pakistani Air Force planes for violating the Indian airspace. After his MiG-21 Bison was shot down by the Pakistan Air Force, Abhinandan jumped into a stream and tried to swallow important documents. He fired a shot in the air, while being faced with a group of local boys trying to rough him up. He was then handed over to the Pakistani Army.
Today, after two days of heightened tension between India and Pakistan, the Wing Commander finally will come home.
Hours before his release, a poem has gone viral on social media. Titled My Brother With A Bloodied Nose, the poem sums up what Abhinandan Varthaman has had to go through since his Bison was shot down.
Here is the poem:
My brother with a bloodied nose, / An officer and gentleman. / Landed across the Line of Control today. / Ejecting after doing the best he can.
They caught him on their land and then, / Thrashed him like perhaps any of us would. / Till the army stepped in and dispersed them. / And rescued him while they could.
They asked him who he was and he said, / With poise and utmost grace. / A flying pilot of the Indian Air Force. / Battered, bruised, but with a proud face.
If only the general public could, / Muster a milligram of the same poise. / And realize that their war drum beating. / Is a ridiculous dangerous noise.
My brother with a bloodied nose, / He stood there firm and tall. / And smiled in the face of his captors. / And taught us the biggest lesson of them all.
That bravery is not ordered online, / Does not ship overnight on Amazon Prime. / Tis not the moment for jingoism and memes. / For armchair aggro tis not the time.
My brother with a bloodied nose, / Thank you for your dedication and verve. / Your class and bravery I fear though, / Is a little more than some of us deserve.
For those whose fury takes wing today, / Who have no idea what it's like. / To parachute into enemy territory, / Taking a hit in a combat strike.
My brother with a bloodied nose, / You've taught a lesson to us all. / You can bail out of an aircraft at high speed, / And yet to lows never fall.
And keep your cheer and character in times, / Of uncertainty in the face of death. / And learn again to behave as human beings, / If we only would our conscience let.
My brother with a bloodied nose. / Keep your chin up, enjoy the brew. / A salute to your sacrifice today and forever. / Hold on a while, we're coming to get you.
My brother with a bloodied nose. / The bison who took on the sun. / Here's to you and all those that stand guard for us. / Nabah Sparsam Diptam.
Salut!
The moving poem was shared widely on Twitter in the past two days. However, it was credited to Adhiti, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman's sister.
What a wonderful, thoughtful, wise and emotional poem from Wg. Cmdr #Abhinandan's sister, Adhiti!
Captain Manivannan (@mani1972ias) February 28, 2019
Salutes. pic.twitter.com/IReAx2AYqb
The poem is actually written by Varun Ram Iyer, who posted the same on his Facebook page on February 27, after news about Abhinandan broke. After his poem went viral on social media, from Twitter to WhatsApp, Varun took to Facebook to write, "My name is Varun, and I'm the original author of this poem (you can verify this from my freely accessible Facebook wall, which is where this was first published). I've been reached out to by a few people who have been receiving this poem on Social Media via FB, WhatsApp where the credits for the author are either absent / attributed to someone else. If any of you do come across such an instance, I'd appreciate it if you could share a message on said thread / group on the lines of "The author of this poem and other pieces about this issue and others can be reached at https://m.facebook.com/varunramiyer. Check out the statuses and the Notes section for his other works.""
On March 1, ahead of the release of Abhinandan Varthaman by Pakistan, Varun Ram Iyer wrote another poem for the Wing Commander, titled: Perhaps We Can.
Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was captured by the Pakistani Army after his MiG-21 Bison jet was shot down by the Pakistani Air Force. Abhinandan was kept in Pakistan custody even as pressure from all over the world mounted on the neighbouring country to release the pilot. On February 28 afternoon, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan announced that the IAF pilot will be sent back to India on March 1.
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