The ceremony to honour RAF pilot`Tiger' Rajan in Normandy this month.
Thanks to the power of the internet, the relatives of a World War II fighter pilot finally paid their respects at his grave in a tiny town in Normandy, France, this month. Late last year it was my very great privilege to piece together the story of `Tiger' Rajan, the RAF Typhoon pilot whose grave is uniquely marked in three languages - English, French and Hindi. It all began with in an exchange of emails between the webmaster of Bharat Rakshak and the French-based Association pour le Souvenir des Ailes de la Victoire de Normandie (ASAVN).
On 17 November I posted Elegy In a Country Churchyard on my blog and on 20 November I followed it up with a post titled Pilot Project.
Then, earlier this month, thanks to the reach of the internet, the long-lost pilot's relatives stood beside his final resting place, half a world away. The photograph above, of the official commemoration ceremony of a plaque in honour of the pilot, was sent to me by one of his relatives who travelled to France.
She and other family members sent me some wonderful emails last week. One email, from Dr Shobha Varthaman, acknowledged the fact that ``The West still remembers those who sacrificed their lives to bring peace to their land.''
Another email, from Farida Singh, said: ``The story both of you have opened up for us is truly amazing. So much so that my son, on a business visit from the US, was almost late for an important meeting: he wanted to read and see everything related to this. What is a country's legacy, if not to inspire the young? And in this case, a toast to those Frenchmen who realised what it would mean to the family and, a great many more interested Indians! Thank you both for taking the trouble!''
To view the whole story of Tiger Rajan, go to my full-length feature article at Anglo-Indian Portal.
8 comments:
This has touched so many hearts, David, what a wonderful tribute for you to have become involved in. It is truly inspiring.
That's amazing. Love it. God bless him. You're a great guy to be a part of this. Good on ya mate.
Hi Carol,
Thank you, ma'am. I was certainly touched by the story and the fact that more than 60 years later there was a chance of making contat with his family members.
I guess I'm very proud to have played a small, peripheral role in bringing the story to a wider audience.
These stories cannot fail to touch us.
Cheers
David
G'day FHB,
Thank you most sincerely for that comment. Funny thing is, I thought this yarn would get a lot of comments.
Dunno about me being a great guy - but the jigsaw pieces of the amazing story just had to be pulled together and presented to an international audience.
Thank you for your wishes.
Cheers
David
Oh it is so touching. I applaud you for being part of this. Inspiring indeed.
Always stay like that.
Cheers.
What an incredible tale!
Hi Cuckoo,
Thank you for those wonderful, touching words.
Yes, I will always stay the way I am.
It was a very great honour to be able to tell that story.
Cheers
David
Hi Debbie,
It was a tough one to piece together, from fragments of information.
But it was very rewarding to be able to piece together the story of a man who fought in Commonwealth uniform, and died on the soil of a country so far removed from his own birthplace.
The sort of story, I think, that touches us all.
Cheers
David
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