Dras: Ten years after the Kargil War, it was time to remember the brave hearts who laid their lives while protecting country's border.
But amid the majestic flypasts, singing, dancing and the surge of patriotism associated with the euphoria of a victory day celebration, there were dozens of families who are still struggling to come to terms with their loss.
For families the Vijay Diwas celebration on the tenth anniversary of the Kargil War on Sunday was a bitter-sweet experience. There was a sense of immense pride and enormous sadness, all at once.
"Once they reached the top, they cleared up two bunkers. The enemy panicked and pushed the sangars so the stones which came rolling, they took him and the platoon; they fell 100 feet. That's how he died but his action totally surprised the enemy and they vacated the post," said Colonel Ravindranath, Captain Kengurus's former Commanding Officer.
"After 10 years this is the first day after his demise that I am happy because he has been given the recognition by the Army and us also. I am very thankful to them," said S P Kalia, father of Captain Amol Kalia, winner of the Vir Chakra.
The Army has promised that the memory of these men will never be forgotten.
"As a son, he was a great, a virtuous son, a special creation of the lord, respectful to the elders, loving to those younger, always smiling and helping everybody," said G L Batra, father of Param Vir Chakra winner Captain Vikram Batra.
For those who called Dras home at the height of the Kargil War, reporting those events was difficult. As journalists, we are trained to remain neutral in what we report, but for those momentous months in the summer of 1999, we were squarely in the middle of it all -- a dramatic time when the Indian Army did what many thought would not be possible.