Agnipankh

Shree Ashtavinayak Cine Vision Limited

Company type	Film production company
Industry	Film production
Founder	Dhilin Mehta, Seema Kar
Products	Films

Agnipankh (The Wings of Fire) is a 2004 Indian Hindi action movie scripted and helmed by Sanjiv Puri. The narrative centres on Indian Air Force pilots. Produced by Dhilin Mehta and Seema Kar under the banner of Shree Ashtavinayak Cine Vision Limited, it features performances by Jimmy Sheirgill, Sameer Dharmadhikari, and Rahul Dev.

Synopsis

Template:Long plot The story begins with a homage to Wg. Cdr. Rakesh Rustogi and other heroes who sacrificed their lives for the Indian Air Force. The focus then moves to Air Force Station Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir, where Flying Officer Siddharth Singh readies his Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 for a reconnaissance sortie. Despite being struck by a SAM, Siddharth successfully completes the mission and lands safely. Upon returning, he encounters his rival and fellow pilot, Flying Officer Sameer Kelkar. Siddharth’s mother expresses concern over the dangers of his career, but he dismisses her worries. Later, Siddharth discusses the mission and the tense situation in Kashmir with his father.

The scene transitions to a golf game where two senior Air Force officials converse about recent border incursions and the ongoing conflict in Kashmir; unbeknownst to them, a Pakistani intelligence agent overhears their conversation and reports it to his command. The Pakistan Army infers from reconnaissance data that the Indian Air Force is formulating future strategies. To gather more intelligence, they deploy their top spy to infiltrate the Srinagar Airbase. Meanwhile, Flight Lieutenant Anjana "Anjie" Rawat, a helicopter pilot with a tomboyish demeanor, is introduced. A subplot reveals Anjana’s affection for Sameer, who instead harbours feelings for Surabhi, a wealthy socialite interested in Siddharth. At this point, Flight Lieutenant Vishal Dev arrives as a new posting at Srinagar, accompanied by his wife Nupur.

The Pakistani spy secures employment at the airbase and continually transmits vital information back to Pakistan. With rising tensions along the Line of Control, the Indian Air Force anticipates an aerial assault targeting Srinagar, prompting heightened security measures around the base. Additional reconnaissance missions are launched; however, one involving Vishal and Siddharth ends disastrously when Vishal is shot down over enemy territory and presumed dead, resulting in Siddharth’s suspension from flying duties by the AOC. It later emerges that Sameer revealed Siddharth’s unfaithfulness to Surabhi, causing her to end their relationship—a factor contributing to Siddharth’s compromised mission performance. Feeling remorseful, Sameer admits the truth to Surabhi, which leads to her reconciliation with Siddharth.

Concurrently, insurgents launch several attacks on the airbase but are consistently repelled. The Pakistan Army concludes that disabling Srinagar’s radar is essential for a successful airstrike; thus, their spy posing as a senior officer facilitates terrorist infiltration into sensitive areas of the base. However, Siddharth and Sameer thwart this plan. Following these failures, Pakistan initiates extensive aerial bombardments on eleven IAF bases, prompting an Indian counterattack. Siddharth and Sameer are assigned to a Special Mission aimed at destroying a Pakistani ammunition depot critical for enemy supply lines. During this operation, both pilots are shot down in combat; they eject safely but are captured and detained in a Pakistani POW camp.

While imprisoned, Siddharth and Sameer endure regular torture from senior Pakistan Army officers demanding intelligence but refuse to divulge information. They share captivity with other Indian prisoners until they orchestrate an escape aided by Lieutenant Sangram Singh Shekhawat—a veteran of the 1971 war from the 6th Rajput Regiment. Along their route to freedom, they encounter Vishal, previously believed dead but actually evading capture.

Using a radio seized from their captors, the escapees establish contact with the Indian Army’s 3rd Battalion, The Grenadiers, inadvertently alerting Pakistani forces who then initiate a manhunt. Upon learning of their presence behind enemy lines, the IAF collaborates with Indian Army Para Commandos to conduct a joint search and rescue operation within hostile territory. During intense firefights while escaping, Vishal and Lieutenant Shekhawat lose their lives; however, Siddharth and Sameer are successfully extracted by Para Commandos aboard Mi-17 helicopters piloted by Anjana. The rescued personnel return home where they receive honours from the Government of India. The film concludes with Siddharth and Sameer preparing for their subsequent mission.

Cast

• Jimmy Sheirgill portrays Flying Officer Siddharth "Sid" "Sidy" Singh
• Sameer Dharmadhikari appears as Flying Officer Sameer "Sam" "Sammy" Kelkar
• Rahul Dev features as Flight Lieutenant Vishal Dev
• Shamita Shetty plays Flight Lieutenant Anjana Rawat / Anjana Kelkar
• Richa Pallod acts as Surabhi Dhar / Surabhi Singh
• Divya Dutta takes on the role of Nupur Vishal Dev
• Kulbhushan Kharbanda embodies Air Vice Marshal Amod Mehta
• Kiran Kumar is cast as Lieutenant Sangram Singh Shekhawat, a veteran of the 6th Rajput Regiment from the Indo-Pakistani war of 1971
• Vrajesh Hirjee portrays Ittefaq
• Ashish Vidyarthi plays Haider Baluchi, a sniper in the Pakistan Army
• Daya Shankar Pandey appears as Fateh Afghani, an ISI agent
• Shrivallabh Vyas enacts Firoz Ali Niyazi, an officer in the Pakistan Army
• Akshay Anand features as Flight Lieutenant Charlie
• Anang Desai assumes the role of Mr. Singh, father to Siddharth
• Neelu Kohli plays Mrs. Singh, Siddharth’s mother
• Vishwajeet Pradhan is cast as Squadron Leader Sawant
• Benjamin Gilani portrays Group Captain Sehgal
• S. P. Lalwani acts as Flight Instructor
• Bakul Thakkar appears as Flight Lieutenant Kunal Tiwari
• Bhavin Thakkar plays Zoor
• Sunil Upadhyay takes on the role of Instructor
• Sanjeev Puri features as Major Bhullar
• Kuldeep Dubey enacts Flight Lieutenant Kuldeep
• Dawood Khan portrays Rehmat
• Shailendra Srivastav plays Tahir
• Vikram Sahu appears as Kuldeep Sharma
• Prashant Pathak acts as Mr. Qureshi
• Adil Rana is cast as a Pakistan Air Force Officer
• Vijendra Gill, Dinesh Bagadi, and Fazal Sheikh play assistants to Haider Baluchi
• Raju Patel features as an Indian Flight Lieutenant
• Deepak Divekar portrays a Pakistani General
• Shravani Goswami and Smita Patade appear as Indian Flight Lieutenants
• Sheel Mathur acts as an Interrogator
• Deepika plays Mrs. Singh Shekhawat

Reception

Taran Adarsh from IndiaFM rated the movie 1 out of 5 stars, commenting, "Overall, AGNI PANKH is likely to be overlooked due to its numerous shortcomings that overshadow its strengths. It falls below average."

External links

• Template:IMDb title