In this special episode of Cyrus Says, writer and editor Sharmishtha Mukherjee is joined by her father, Air Commodore (Retd.) Bonney Mukherjee, for a conversation that moves effortlessly between nostalgia, history, humour, and survival.

The episode begins with Sharmishtha’s book Pudding: The Memory Keepers of Bandra — a loving portrait of a neighbourhood, its people, streets, food, aunties, trees, clubs, churches, and disappearing culture. Together with Cyrus, she reflects on what it means to grow roots, belong to a place, and preserve everyday stories before they vanish.

In the second half, her father shares extraordinary first-hand accounts of life as an Indian Air Force fighter pilot, including being shot during the 1971 war, flying combat missions, surviving injuries, and the quiet resilience required to return home and carry on.

The conversation also touches on Sharmishtha’s experience as a cancer survivor, family strength, humour as a coping mechanism, and the strange, beautiful ways people endure.

Gentle, funny, emotional, and deeply Indian — this is an episode about memory, courage, and the lives behind history.