The highly anticipated Tamil movie Amaran, which is set for a Diwali release this week, is a biopic of Major Mukund Varadarajan of 44 Rashtriya Rifles who died in an encounter with terrorists in Shopian area of Jammu and Kashmir in 2014.
Varadarajan, 31, was killed in heavy firing by terrorists who were hiding in a village in Shopian. However, he managed to kill three terrorists before dying. He was posthumously awarded the Ashoka Chakra for showing "exemplary leadership skills, raw courage and swift action."
Directed by Rajkumar Periasamy, the film stars Sivakarthikeyan, Sai Pallavi, Bhuvan Arora, Rahul Bose, and Suresh Chakravarthi.
Major Mukund's wife, Indhu Rebecca Varghese, had said at a promotional event that she wanted her husband to be remembered and took it as a sign when producer Kamal Haasan approached her about the film.
Who is Major Mukund Varadarajan?
Mukund Varadarajan was born in Tambaram, Tamil Nadu, on April 12, 1983, to R. Varadarajan and Geetha. He has two sisters, Nithya and Swetha.
Mukund married his long-time girlfriend Indhu Rebecca Varghese in 2009, and the couple welcomed a daughter, Arshea Mukund, in 2011.
He did his Bachelor of Commerce from Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Viswa Mahavidyalaya and a diploma in journalism from Madras Christian College.
Mukund came from an Army family—his grandfather and two uncles served in the military. This became and inspiration for him to join the Army and fight for his country.
On March 18, 2006, after graduating from the Officers Training Academy, an institution that trains officers for the Short Service Commission (SSC), he was made the Lieutenant in one of the oldest Indian regiments, the Rajput Regiment, and was promoted as a Captain just seven months later.
He was part of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, and on October 18, 2012, he was promoted to the rank of Major. He was then transferred to the 44th Battalion of the Rashtriya Rifles, a counter-terrorism force, and posted in Jammu and Kashmir during heightened India-Pakistan tensions.
On April 25, 2014, just two weeks after his 31st birthday, Mukund led a team in south Kashmir after receiving intelligence regarding the presence of militants in a civilian household. Along with Sepoy Vikram Singh, they successfully made it to the house, escaping heavy gunfire. One militant was killed, but their target, senior senior commander of Hizbul Mujahideen Altaf Wani, fled.
They approached a cement outhouse where Wani and another militant was hiding, and managed to kill the latter with a grenade.
Wani, however, fired at Singh, injuring him in his neck and jaw. He later succumbed to injuries.
Varadarajan shot Wani in response and killed him.
Though Varadarajan said he was fine, he collapsed outside the outhouse. He had three gunshot wounds. The Major succumbed to injuries on his way to the Army hospital.
Varadarajan was given the nation’s highest peacetime gallantry award, the Ashoka Chakra, while Singh was awarded the Shaurya Chakra, India’s third highest peacetime gallantry award.
Varadarajan's wife Indhu received the honor on his behalf from President Pranab Mukherjee on the Republic Day in 2015.
He was the fourth person from Tamil Nadu to be awarded the Ashoka Chakra.