India, Aug. 25 -- Vanity vans lined up on the tarmac, and film crews with cameras waited for the perfect frame to capture MiG-21 jets roaring across the skies of Bikaner Nal Air Force Station for the shooting of the upcoming Bollywood movie Love And War. The moment marked the jet's last operational flight ahead of its retirement next month.

The airbase doubled as a set for the Sanjay Leela Bhansali-directed film Love and War, in which the MiG-21 will play a decisive role. The movie stars Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, and Vicky Kaushal. The plot details of the movie are still under wraps, but there are reports that it's a love triangle set against the backdrop of war.

Once described as a "rocket with wings," the Indian Air Force's MiG-21 fi...