Chennai, Feb 27 (IANS) The parents of Wing Commander Varthaman Abhinandan were engulfed by gloom after coming to know that their son had been taken into custody in Pakistan.

 When IANS contacted his father, retired Air Marshal Simhakutty Varthaman, over telephone, he declined to speak. The distressed family lives in Chennai's outskirts.

Like his father, Abhinandan chose the Indian Air Force (IAF) and was commissioned into service in 2004.

His father was once the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Air Command.

Simhakutty Varthaman had shared his knowledge about the air force to film director Mani Ratnam for his Tamil movie "Kaatru Veliyidai" where the hero, an air force pilot, is captured by the Pakistan Army.

A person known to Simhakutty Varthaman told IANS: "I know the senior Varthaman. He is a nice person. I have not met Abhinandan. I know he is married."