Kargil Vijay Diwas Anniversary | Salman Khan's jokes, Suniel Shetty's tears: When Bollywood stars visited soldiers

New Delhi: Wounded soldiers at an Army medical unit during the Kargil war in 1999 were in for a surprise as a retinue of Bollywood stars like Salman Khan, Suniel Shetty, Ravina Tandon and Shabana Azmi walked in to boost their morale, recounts a new book.

As India marks the 26th anniversary of Kargil Vijay Diwas this Saturday, "The Kargil War: Surgeon’s Testimony" by Arup Ratan Basu shares a firsthand account of life inside an Army medical unit during the war -- from performing surgeries on wounded soldiers under relentless artillery fire to the occasional airdropping of film stars visiting the troops.

The surgeon recalls Salman Khan's silly jokes, Javed Jaffery's signature dance moves, Suniel Shetty's teary eyes, Pooja Batra's disinterest in the visit, and a sense of celebration among the soldiers who jostled to be photographed with the actors.

"Suniel Shetty entered, followed by several other celebrities – including lyricist Javed Akhtar and his wife, actress Shabana Azmi. I also recognised Sharad Kapoor, who appeared on television but was not as well known.

"The film stars had landed in Kargil! The purpose of their visit was to greet the wounded soldiers and boost their morale by talking to them for a while. They started enquiring about the patients, and I accompanied them into the ward,' recalls the surgeon in the book.

According to the book, while Azmi, Akhtar, and actor Vinod Khanna showed genuine concern for the wounded soldiers, others, including Salman Khan, Raveena Tandon, Javed Jaffrey, and Pooja Batra, appeared "casual about the entire thing".

For instance, Khan "kept cracking silly jokes throughout the visit".

"He (Khan) wasn’t even sure whether he was in Kargil or Dras or Leh. I don’t think it made any difference to him at all. Raveena Tandon kept repeating the same statement to each patient: ‘Hello bhaiya, how are you? Can you recognise me? I am Raveena.’ When she said this to a semi-unconscious patient, the patient just closed his eyes.

"Javed Jaffrey tried to impress the hospital staff with his breakdance and Pooja Batra looked quite uninterested in the whole affair. She seemed keen to leave. I wondered if she was afraid of being in a warzone," adds the book.

But the excitement on the soldiers’ faces at seeing movie stars in the flesh was palpable. The word of the celebrities’ presence spread quickly through the hospital, and even staff who had never set foot in the ward before -- clerks, washermen, cooks, and others -- showed up, clicking photos.

Some soldiers, when asked about their battlefield experiences, were more than happy to “add a bit of spice” to their stories.

"I knew that because they had told me about the same events a couple of days ago, but without the added flavour. Most soldiers expressed their desire to go back to the front and fight. Their spirit seemed to greatly impress the stars. I noticed Suniel Shetty even wiping tears from his eyes," writes the author in the book.

Some with minor wounds got carried away while joining in on the fun. And when the commanding officer saw them literally jumping from one bed to another in order to get their photo clicked, they were ordered to be discharged right away.

"The commanding officer suddenly called me over and pointed to one of the patients. ‘Wasn’t that fellow admitted three days ago with intense back pain and sciatica-like symptoms?’ he asked. I looked closer and then confirmed that to be true. ‘Then how is he jumping from one bed to another trying to get himself photographed?’ bellowed the senior officer. ‘Discharge him right away!" shares the book.

The euphoria remained even after the celebrities were gone.

As the soldiers moved around with their chests jutting out, as "though they had just starred in a hit movie". Those who had shaken hands with Khan and Tandon said that they would not wash their hands for a couple of days.

"The autographs and other mementoes from the occasion were passed around and lovingly examined by all," it adds.

Priced at Rs 399, "The Kargil War: Surgeon’s Testimony" is a firsthand account by Dr. Arup Ratan Basu, who, between May 19 and July 24, 1999, served as the sole army surgeon at the Kargil field hospital. During this intense period, he performed over 250 surgeries — including one on an enemy soldier.