New Delhi: Elated after completing a successful mission to the International Space Station (ISS), Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla on Thursday expressed hope that very soon an Indian will journey to space “in our own capsule, on our rocket, from our soil.”
Speaking at a press conference, Shukla described his first-hand experience aboard the ISS as “invaluable” and far beyond what any training could offer.
He recalled the words of Rakesh Sharma, India’s first astronaut, saying India still looks “saare jahaan se achcha (better than the entire world)” even today.
Reflecting on his Axiom-4 mission, Shukla said the learnings from the ISS would greatly benefit India’s upcoming Gaganyaan mission, adding that the past year had been a remarkable journey of growth and discovery.
“No matter how much you train, the moment you sit inside the rocket and the engines ignite, the feeling is entirely different. For the first few seconds, I felt like I was running behind the rocket before I could catch up. From that moment until splashdown, the experience was unbelievable—so exciting and overwhelming that I still struggle to find the right words to describe it,” he shared.
