K.S. Nair’s The Forgotten Few: The Contribution of the Indian Air Force in World War 2

Close to three million Indians served in uniform as part of the Allied armed forces during the Second World War, and yet, the Indian chapter of this global story is barely known. The absence of Indians in most books and films on World War II, including the Christopher Nolan film Dunkirk (2017), is telling.

The Forgotten Few is the first contemporary attempt to produce a historical narrative of India’s contribution specifically to the Air Force component of the War, which led in significant ways to the formation, and exploits, of the Indian Air Force in independent India. It brings to light some of the lost stories of Indian aviators who built the very foundations of human and physical infrastructure for what is now the world’s fourth-largest air force. Based on interviews with some of the last Indian survivors of the Second World War, and material from authentic war diaries, this book makes for riveting reading.

Get to Know the Author
K.S. NAIR is the son and son-in-law of Indian Air Force officers. He is a graduate of IIT Delhi and IIM Bangalore, and a former director and CEO of multinational consulting firms. But, beyond that, he has been a lifelong student of Indian aviation history.

He has collected aviation-related material with an India connection from around the globe. He counts himself fortunate to have grown up around people who played key roles in some of the Air Force’s finest hours (as well as some of its most difficult), and having met several key figures from the periods he writes about.

He has published a number of articles on the Indian armed forces in Indian, American and British journals. This is his second book; his first, Ganesha’s Flyboys (2012), covered the Indian Air Force’s role in the first-ever UN peacekeeping mission in the Congo. Most of the author proceeds were donated to the welfare fund of an IAF squadron.

Praise for the Book:

“The Forgotten Few is a labour of love, by a writer who has been steeped in the stories of the Indian armed forces and has an aficionado’s commitment to retelling them-with persuasive passion. Strongly recommended.”
Commodore C. Uday Bhaskar (Retd)

“An extraordinary and gripping account of the early days of Indian Military Aviation… this book is an outstanding tribute to the deeds of those magnificent men and their flying machines.”
Squadron Leader Rana Chhina (Retd)

Publisher: HarperCollins India
Price: INR 699
Format: Paperback

Please send all press enquiries to: sagiri.dixit@harpercollins.co.in