Days after the Indian Air Force (IAF) raised objection to the presentation of gender bias in the film, Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl, former IAF pilot Gunjan Saxena, on whose life the film is based, has opened up about her experience at the Air Force. She also compared it with how it has been portrayed in the commercial film, which sees Janhvi Kapoor (as Saxena) face discrimination for being a woman.

"It is the training and strong ethos of the Indian Air Force that gave me the courage to do all those extraordinary things that I did. [It is also] the driving force behind all the women officers who have served, or are still serving in this organisation," says Saxena.