Son of  91-year-old Fathima Beevi returned home after a span of 45 years and took his family by surprise. Sajjad Thangal from Kerala was presumed dead in the 1976 Indian Airlines plane crash that claimed 95 lives. The well-known actress,  Rani Chandra, also passed away in the crash. What’s the connection, you must wonder? Read on.
Sajjad Thangal left for Gulf in search of a job in 1971. Soon, he was employed as the organiser of cultural programmes in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Rani Chandra was part of one of these activities where she flew to Abu Dhabi to attend the event. On her way to Chennai (then Madras), the unfortunate crash occurred in the flight that she was in. Sajjad was supposed to fly with her troupe, but due to last-minute changes, he couldn’t. He survived the crash, but he lost many friends that day.
Sajjad went into depression because of survivor’s guilt. He did not contact his family who presumed that he died in the crash. He was afraid that he would be hounded by the local authorities for being involved in the crash. At this point, he didn’t even have insurance, which could have been a problem for him.
After this incident, he left the Gulf and stayed in Mumbai where he did odd jobs to survive. When he grew weak, his friend took him to Panvel SEALÂ Ashram. The ashram is known for rescuing destitute and missing children from the Railway Platforms and Streets of Mumbai. Sajjad underwent psychological treatment, but he remained aloof of everything around him. The NGO authorities, however, was able to find information about his mother, Fathima Beevi. Thanks to them, Sajjid was able to return to his ancestral home in Sathamkotta.
Fathima shared, “It is a dream come true for me. I never thought I will be able to meet my kin, especially my mother.”
From this incident, we can all come to the conclusion that miracles do happen.
