Fallen heroes of 26/11: Chef who lost saving guests’ lives

It was India’s 9/11. The victims had come from across India and abroad. One of the fallen heroes was sous-chef Vijay Rao Banja from Hyderabad, who was shot down in the Taj Mahal Palace while he was trying to evacuate guests through the rear entrance of the kitchen.

Vijay was in the forefront of the hotel kitchen staff, who were helping the guests exit. A lady recalls that he had assured her, while she was in panic, “Madam, please don’t worry they have to shoot me before they get to you.”

Vijay, who also served as executive chef at one of the Taj hotels in Hyderabad, before being transferred to Mumbai, is remembered by his colleagues as a man who was not only an ace at his culinary skills but also as a person with a kind heart. A person who always had a smile on his face showed love and affection to all his colleagues. He was someone adored not only by the kitchen staff but by everyone in both the hotels that he had worked at.

He left behind his wife Farida and his son Rohan, who was only in Class 6. While his son was totally devastated by his loss, his wife, who couldn’t take the stress, passed away the next year.

The bitter irony was that Rohan was to be given confirmation as a full member of the church on December 6 that year for which the family was to gather in Mumbai to celebrate the occasion.

The tragic news was conveyed to Vijay’s aged mother, who was unaware of what had been happening in Mumbai as she was sleeping, at the house at Defence Colony, Sainikpuri, Secunderabad.

The news was subsequently told to his other family members leaving all of them in utter shock. Especially since they were constantly in touch with him, through the night as they were aware of what was going on through the TV news, till almost 2.30 am.

“He actually asked us not to call him due to radio silence. In fact, he had assured them that they were safe and locked behind closed doors. It is uncertain when the decision to open the doors and start the evacuation process of the guests began. But there is no doubt he took the brunt of the aggression, he was reportedly shot three times and when he fell the doors of the main kitchen were shut behind him. His body was shifted along with others who were killed the next morning. A grueling task ensued running from hospital to hospital, for several hours before his body was identified by his wife and brother-in-law Zubin,” Vijay’s elder brother Vinod Rao Banja said.

Vijay was the youngest of his four siblings — three brothers and one sister.

“We were devastated to hear that our youngest sibling was taken away from us in such a drastic way. It has taken all these years to come to terms at his passing away. It still hurts. At that time we had questioned why Vijay, of all the people in the house, had to go before all of us,” Vinod added.

Vijay’s son Rohan, continued his studies and completed his Masters in Sports Journalism. At present, he is assisting the government of Meghalaya in their ministry of sports. Reportedly, Rohan doesn’t want to remember the horrifying incident and share his feelings.

Two other persons from the state who died on the fateful night of November 26, 2008, are Amina Begum, a six-month bride from Nizamabad, and Lakshmi Narayana Haridwarilal Goel (57), an advocate from Hyderabad.

Amina Begum died along with her husband when a bullet from the terrorists pierced through her neck while the lawyer died when an IED exploded in the taxi he was travelling in near Vile Parle. He was returning to a relative's house in Mumbai after missing the train to Hyderabad from CST.