A TV picture shows the hostages with their captors.

Another video grab shows Antaryami with a rifle pointed to his head.

Antaryami, Sukhdev Singh and Tilak Raj arrive in Delhi. (PTI)

It was 9.30 am on July 21 when Antaryami, Tilak Raj and Sukhdev Singh reached Falluja from Kuwait. They got off their vehicles for directions to the place where cement and steel were to be unloaded. Suddenly, they heard shots being fired in the air. About 50 masked gun-toting guerrillas appeared out of the crowd and overpowered the three Indians along with four others.

?The situation was very tense. A huge crowd was shouting anti-American slogans. The road was blocked. Our hands were tied behind our backs, we were blindfolded and thrown into a vehicle,? recalled Sukhdev Singh.

They didn?t know where exactly they were held captive but it was Falluja. The kidnappers had snatched whatever they had.

?The first day was horrible. We did not know what was to happen. We?re not able to eat and drink. We?re given rice, rotis and chicken. They were a bit harsh for a few days but became friendly after a week. We?re never beaten nor threatened,? Sukhdev said.

Kidnappers become friendly

Antaryami and Sukhdev Singh knew no Arabic. Tilak Raj had some knowledge and would translate into Hindi whenever the kidnappers gave an instruction.

The kidnappers became so friendly with the hostages that they washed their clothes and offered cigarettes to Tilak Raj and one Kenyan. The kidnappers themselves did not smoke.

?We?re frequently shifted to new places but all rooms were air-conditioned. Water was scarce and we?re allowed to take a bath after 3-4 days. We?re also told to offer namaaz and were given a Quran. We?re also asked to remember our God,? Tilak Raj said.

Antaryami becomes eye of a storm

It seemed to Antaryami as if he was watching a horror movie. ?I do not know why I was treated differently by the abductors. They pinned their eyes on me from the very first day. I was frequently slapped and terrorised and was kept in a separate room at times. One day they grabbed me and took me to an unknown place. I was slapped, my hands were tied and I was made to sit on a floor for two hours. I was given a red shirt to wear. They put a gun to my head and shouted a word. My photographs were clicked. Death was almost round the corner. I remembered Wahe guru. I was terrorised and then they dropped me in the room where others were kept,? Antaryami recalled.

The others thought Antaryami had been killed and now it would be their turn. But the hostages were told that the drama was enacted to shoot a video which was later seen on television. They said Antaryami was picked as he was the seniormost among the hostages who worked for Kuwait Gulf Link Transport Company.

The abductors told the hostages that India was a friendly nation as it did not agree to send troops to Iraq. They also told them that they would be released as soon as the transport company agreed to accept their demands.

?We used to watch television at night and would sleep for some time during the day. We?re also shown clippings of protests and appeals which were made by E. Ahmed (minister of state for external affairs). We?re not able to understand the language but watched the footage regularly,? Sukhdev said.

The brutal killing of 12 Nepalis shook the Indians who thought they were going to die, too.

A day before they were released, the hostages were given the news at midnight and told to take a bath and put on fresh clothes. They did not sleep at all that night and were asked to board a vehicle at 7 in the morning.

Hope vanishes again

?We reached Baghdad around 10 am. We?re given breakfast and then lunch. We?re asked to board a vehicle around 1.30 pm. Suddenly, the vehicle in which we were travelling was on a Falluja road. Our heart sank. We were in despair again. Suddenly, after 4-5 km the vehicle was stopped and turned towards Baghdad. We?re asked to board a van which belonged to the Greek embassy. The abductors fled and we reached the Indian embassy,? Sukhdev Singh said.

Sunlight after 42 days

The one thing that stuck in their minds was the shock of sunlight after 42 days. All through their captivity, the hostages were kept in dark rooms. ?It took us over half-an-hour to adjust to daylight,? recalled Tilak Raj. For Sukhdev Singh and Antaryami, it was like being reborn.