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Vijay Diwas Special: Major Deep Singh Sengar who defied death twice recalls fighting the Kargil war
On Kargil Vijay Diwas, Major Deep Singh Sengar (Retd) recounts the brave battle fought, talk about overcoming life-altering injuries.
Major Deep Singh Sengar (retd) had once said, “For as long as I can remember, I always wanted to join the armed forces, wear the uniform, defeat the bad guys, and live happily ever after.” A war veteran and recipient of a Gallantry Award, having fought at the Kargil and defied death twice, he quit the armed forces in 2001 after an injury in combat put him out of action. But that wasn’t the end of the road for him, as he didn’t lose hope and started his corporate career and reached new heights. On Kargil Vijay Diwas, Major Singh recalls his days on the battle ground, fighting the war, and how life gave him a second chance.
A Kargil war veteran, a Kargil hero — what’s the essence of these words and phrases when people address you with these?
Uncomfortable! The ‘hero’ part makes me uncomfortable. I’m a lucky one, but there are thousands of gallant soldiers who’re not with us today. Everyone who contributed to that war effort is a hero and it’ll be great to celebrate them. Having said that, reference of Kargil brings about a sense of pride for every Indian. For me personally, it brings back memories of victory as also of loss of friends and colleagues who made the supreme sacrifice. I’m fortunate to have been able to contribute at that juncture.
The pain and suffering that the Kargil War left behind continues to be a part of many people’s lives. What’s about those two months that still sends shivers down your spine?
Let me narrate an incident. That time we didn’t have cellphones. Some of our teams got satellite phones. In one sensitive case, there was a call home and here is how part of the conversation went with the parents.
Mom: (crying) We see an officer on TV one day and next day we hear about his martyrdom. We’re worried for you son.
Dad: Son, don’t worry about us. We’re fine. Don’t come back till you teach a lesson to those buggers. Give them a bloody nose.
Thinking about all the mothers and fathers who worried then and worry today about safety of their children who have chosen this noble profession of arms, sends shivers down my spine. Even the parents who stood strong and still carry the burden for all the sons who never came back.
Any vivid memory from the war that you’d never forget or any words that stayed with you?
I spoke about one of our soldier (let’s call him Bravo) in one of my TED talks. We were on a tough mission where he was critical to the success. It was one of those mission where all of us had left letters for the family in case we didn’t come back alive. But just a couple of days before the attack, I got news about something very personal for this soldier and I asked him to go back. Despite knowledge of the seriousness of the personal issue, Bravo didn’t want to go back and said something on the lines of, how will he be able to face his child if he leaves the team just before the final attack.
We had to literally force him to be sent back to attend to his family requirement. The izzat of the regiment and love for own team makes these amazing soldiers perform extraordinary valour... routinely. Such selfless acts and bravery of team members has stayed with me and always motivates me.
Today when people celebrate Kargil Vijay Diwas, as a retired armed force officer, what do you think is its relevance, especially for the younger generation?
I look at Kargil Diwas celebration as an opportunity to honour the men who made the supreme sacrifice, those who were fortunate to come back to their families, those who directly and indirectly supported the ones in uniform and most importantly the army behind the army — the families who had their sons and daughters fighting for the nation.
At the same time, this occasion reminds us of vast porous borders of India, which makes the country vulnerable to infiltration. This behooves huge responsibility on all its citizens to be vigilant. It’s not only the defence forces but every citizen, who needs to be vigilant to avoid external or internal threats. Celebrations like Kargil Diwas are also a reminder of this huge responsibility of all the citizens. Just hope that these lessons of Kargil are integrated into school curriculum some day.
You’ve defied death not once but twice. First in 1998 and then in September 1999, two months after the Kargil war was over. Looking back, do those incidents break you and make you feel weak inside, or do you derive strength from them even today?
I was fortunate to serve the nation as a soldier. Being part of Special Forces, we were constantly in operational areas. While the first time I had critical injuries, I was able to recover and join my team within three months. This gave me immense confidence and self-belief.
[In 1999], after our operations in Kargil, we immediately moved to Srinagar and were inducted into the counter insurgency operations. We conducted series of operations and in one such operation, I got injured the second time. And this injury forced me to be in hospital for almost a year and the medical prognosis was that I’d never walk again. It was life changing. From my childhood, I had never thought of anything other than the armed forces. For the first time in life I was forced to think of things outside of the Armed Forces. Having overcome that phase, today I derive lot of strength from that period of my life.
You’ve been an inspiration for many out there — not just those in the army — that giving up is not an option. In life, there’s always a choice and a second chance. After Kargil War and this near-fatal injury, how did life change and what exactly did you do?
I’ve been fortunate to get support from family, friends and colleagues whenever life threw a challenge at me and whenever there was need for support. Fact is that, my life changed completely after the second injury. After I was told that I’d never walk again, I had to rethink my whole life. I was in late twenties, engaged and had no life skills to survive outside the Armed Forces. Had my own moments of despair and hopelessness. I underwent multiple surgeries. Got great set of doctors who reconstructed the hip joint even as I plunged myself, into preparing for my career transition. I kept my focus on my studies, which also helped keep my mind off the pain. I put in all energy to clear CAT, The Common Admission Test, which is the prerequisite to join the best B Schools of the country. Had to relearn my math from Grade six to grade 12. Kept preparing from the hospital bed where I lay for almost a year. Got help from everyone around; other patients, nursing staff, even the eight grader son of my physiotherapist.
It wasn’t an easy journey but a hugely satisfying one. Getting to IIM Ahmedabad was one part, the more important part was how the shift of focus to test preparation changed the whole perspective. After every surgery, I used to be thinking of the next chapter to be completed rather than thinking about the aches and pains. It personally helped me in the recovery process. While at the hospital, I started rigorous physiotherapy and yoga, which I continue to date. I had appeared for CAT while on a wheelchair. By the time I joined my MBA class, I was already on two crutches and moved to one crutch thereafter.
We saw your journey through the series Jeet Ki Zidd that released earlier this year. How well do you think it represented your life on screen?
As starters, both my biceps put together probably are less than biceps of Amit Sadh (actor who portrayed Major Deep Singh Sengar onscreen). And I am yet to meet a Col Chaudhary (smiles). To be fair, I’ll give credit to the whole Jeet ki Zid team for all their efforts, which spanned more than five years. Show has been made well and the portrayal of different characters is as real as it can be, for a piece of art. Kudos to perseverance of Boney Kapoor, Akash Chawla for not relenting when I initially refused, and to Amit Sadh for all the hard work.
Not only did the team spend time in the overall production of the series, but also spent considerable amount of time interviewing those related to different incidents to recreate the scenes. Each character played their part well. Of course the show has taken artistic liberties. Some nebulous concepts and experiences are difficult to portray. Some level of exaggeration is there for the audience to be able to relate to the actual situation in a short span of time.
I grew up listening to the stories of my Mama who was martyred in 1965 war — Lt Shashindra Singh Vrc. The show modified it to bring it closer. Similarly experiences like PTSD and concepts as abstract as like motivation, leadership under stress etc, are portrayed in an artistic manner. These concepts are been given a physical form. And that becomes Col Chaudhary; my alter ego which is egging me to rise after every fall, to stretch and to continue on to the path of victory — the Zid. So, the show is real in portraying the essence. It’s just that messengers are different in some cases.
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