The story of Vishwaskumar Ramesh is both harrowing and deeply human—a tale of miraculous survival, unbearable loss, and the cruel weight of public scrutiny in the digital age.
Ramesh’s survival in the Air India Flight AI171 crash, which killed 271 people, including his elder brother Ajay, is nothing short of extraordinary. But instead of being solely a story of hope, it has unfolded as a painful narrative of survivor’s guilt and intrusive speculation. His psychological trauma is evident—replaying the crash in his mind, mourning a brother who was just an arm’s length away, and now questioning the value of a life spared.
Survivor’s guilt, which can be as crippling as physical injury, is written all over his words: “I don’t know how I survived,” “I still can’t believe I’m alive.” These aren’t just expressions of disbelief—they're evidence of an inner battle that may take years to heal. The fact that his seat was flung into a pocket of soft ground while the rest of the plane erupted into flames seems to have made his survival feel even more arbitrary and painful.
What makes Ramesh’s suffering worse is the utterly unjust doubt cast upon his story. In an era where social media can elevate anyone to the status of a hero or a villain overnight, he became both. A grieving brother one moment, and the next—a suspected fraud. That Suchitra Krishnamoorthi’s now-deleted post fed a rumour without verification highlights how damaging online speculation can be, especially when aimed at someone already carrying a mountain of trauma.
The facts, as confirmed by medical staff, police, airline records, and video evidence, leave no room for doubt—Ramesh was on that flight, did survive, and did lose his brother. That he had to endure the indignity of having to “prove” his pain, while recovering in a hospital, is a testament to how quickly empathy can be drowned by misinformation in the digital age.
This incident also reflects a wider societal failing: a thirst for controversy that overrides compassion, and the ease with which rumours become viral truths. Ramesh’s case is not unique, but it is a tragic example of how the internet can turn a survivor into a suspect, even in the face of undeniable evidence.
For now, he has retreated into the safety of his family home in Bucharwada, unwilling to speak to anyone outside his inner circle. And perhaps that’s exactly what he needs—time, space, and silence to grieve, process, and eventually, heal.
The question we must ask ourselves is not “how did he survive?” but rather, “how do we support those who carry such unthinkable burdens?”
