9 December 1971. 8.45 p.m. Torpedoed by a Pakistani sub-marine, the INS Khukri sank within minutes. Along with the ship 178 sailors and 18 officers made the supreme sacrifice. Last seen calmly puffing on his cigarette Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla, captain of the Khukri, chose to go down with his ship. This defining moment of the 1971 war between India and Pakistan is the basis of Major General lan Cardozo's attempt to understand what happened that day and why.