Neerja is the youngest daughter and the
only girl in a family that has two older brothers.
She is addressed as Laddo( loved one) by her
parents, Rama( Shabana) and journalist-father
Harish( Yogendra Tiku) . Her father's life lessons
to her are, `don't let anyone kill your spirit.' Quite
like her screen idol, Rajesh Khanna from the
movie Anand, the spirited youngster, wants to live
`a badi( big) life not a long one.' Though she's
bone-tired between her modelling assignments,
Neerja loves to fly. One fateful day, the plane is
hijacked by Libyan terrorists when it makes a halt
at Karachi. The spunky stewardess warns the
pilots in the cockpit about the hijack. But, she
stays back to shield the passengers.
