Unwittingly, Shubhanshu Shukla took his first steps towards space in secret.
As a teenager, he took the National Defence Academy (NDA) entrance exam without informing his family, according to a profile of Shukla published online by the City Montessori School, Lucknow, where he spent his formative years.
A childhood fascination with aircraft, the 1999 Kargil War — two years before his NDA bid — and the story of India’s first cosmonaut, Rakesh Sharma, had stirred an early, unshakable interest.
“I was deeply impressed by him,” Shukla, 39, has said, recalling his childhood years reading and learning about Sharma, who had flown aboard a Soviet Soyuz spacecraft in 1984.
His elder sister Suchi Shukla remembers when it all first started.
“As a child he had once been to an air show, and he later told me how he was fascinated by the speed and sound of the aircraft. Then he had spoken of his dream to fly, but of course, there was no telling at the time how quickly he would embrace his dream.
“As an Indian and as his sister, it’s definitely a very proud moment — for this space journey of my brother is carrying with them the hopes and blessings of a billion Indians,” Suchi said ahead of the launch that was delayed several times.
Shukla is among four astronauts — and designated pilot — aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Wednesday for a two-week visit to the International Space Station.
Six years ago, Shukla was among four Indian Air Force (IAF) test pilots selected by the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) for its human spaceflight programme named Gaganyaan.
After passing out from the NDA, Shukla joined the IAF training academy and was certified as a fighter pilot in 2006. He has logged more than 2,000 hours flying multiple aircraft — combat planes such as MiG-21, MiG-29, Jaguar and Sukhoi Su30-MKI, and the transport aircraft An-32.
“I’ve been extremely fortunate and lucky to have gotten opportunities to fly all my life — which was a dream job for me — and then have the opportunity to apply for the astronauts’ corps,” Shukla said in a profile video uploaded by Axiom Space, a US aerospace company operating the current mission.
The second opportunity emerged when Prime Minister Narendra Modi nudged Isro in 2018 to pursue a human spaceflight programme. The candidate astronauts have undergone training at the Yuri Gagarin Training Centre in Russia and India.
Modi, on February 27, 2024, publicly revealed the identities of the four candidate astronauts preparing for India’s maiden crewed space mission, which has now been scheduled for 2027.
The ISS opportunity emerged after Nasa, during India-US government talks
in 2023, offered to train an Indian astronaut for a mission to the space station.
Shukla’s peers on the mission to the ISS have noted his skills. “Having him as my pilot on the capsule is great,” said Peggy Whitson, a veteran Nasa astronaut and mission commander, in the profile video posted by Axiom. “He is operational-savvy… he’s just wicked smart when it comes to spacecraft technologies,” she said.
The crew shared their launch day playlist. Shukla’s song was “Yun hi chala chal” — an ode to life and its journey. The song is from Swades, the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer that is about a Nasa scientist.
The Lucknow-born Shukla, who goes by the call sign “Shux”, has acknowledged that his trip is something bigger than just a chance for him to achieve his dream. “These are moments that really tell you that you’re getting to be a part of something that is much larger than yourself,” he said in the video.
Ahead of his mission to the ISS, Shukla, who is married to a dentist and has a four-year-old son, said he’s hoping his journey would inspire others in India. “I want to use this opportunity to ignite curiosity among kids,” he said in the video. “Even if my story is able to change one life, it would be a huge success for me.”