Mumbai, Nov. 26 -- As the nation marks the 17th anniversary of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, the daughter of martyred braveheart Hemant Karkare remembers her father, whose courage saved countless lives.

"The entire nation knows him as 26/11 hero, but for me, he was simply my papa who brought me home a puppy."

Jui Karkare Navare shared the soft side of the commanding Hemant Karkare, the chief of the Anti-Terror Squad in Mumbai.

Jui recounted how the day was like any ordinary day, "but at the time I had no idea that my life was about to change forever in a way I could never prepare for."

Hemant was a cheerful person at home, and in Jui's words, "people flocked to Papa like moths to light."

Before being tasked as the ATS chief, he was...