Celestial Return

It took 41 years for a second Indian to pierce the boundary of space. Following Rakesh Sharma’s 1984 space sojourn, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla became India’s second man in space, signalling a new era of ambition and self-reliance. His ascent aboard the Axiom Space Ax-4 mission may have been aboard an American vessel, but make no mistake: this was India’s launch, too.

The long gap between Sharma’s pathbreaking voyage and Shukla’s current mission is not just the story of two men and their stints in microgravity. It is the story of India itself, of a country once dependent on others for access to the heavens but now preparing to send its own crew into space aboard capsules built on Indian soil. Beyond mere symbolism, Shukla’s moment is a marker of transition, from hesitant participant to confident planner of the next space age.

Unlike Sharma, who trained in Star City and flew under the banner of Soviet-Indian camaraderie, Shukla stands at the cusp of a new institutional ecosystem. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), though still a minnow in budgetary terms compared with NASA or the Chinese space agency, has over the years become a byword for cost-effective excellence. With Chandrayaan, Mangalyaan and now Gaganyaan, ISRO is retooling itself for human-rated systems and for staying power in orbit. The successful demonstration of a crew escape system and a high-altitude abort test are the scaffolding of sovereign capability.

More importantly, the changes are systemic. India now boasts a fledgling but functioning astronaut training facility in Bengaluru, which will, in time, replace foreign reliance entirely. Its LVM3 rocket, which will carry the Gaganyaan capsule, has already proved itself. The first uncrewed Gaganyaan mission is scheduled for later this year. Within a few more, an Indian will return to orbit as a host.

The symbolism of Shukla’s journey at this juncture cannot be overstated. In him, India sees the bridge between aspiration and agency. And while Ax-4 was a commercial-cum-international venture, the fact that Shukla was among the crew reflects India’s growing stature as a partner in space - one not just able to contribute payloads and components, but capable of offering trained astronauts and tested technologies.

Beyond low-Earth orbit, India’s ambitions are bold. Over the next two decades, ISRO intends to lay the groundwork for an Indian space station and for crewed lunar exploration. These are part of the long, deliberate blueprint drawn by Indian planners to ensure that space is not a place where India arrives belatedly, but one where it belongs.

Of course, space exploration is a famously slow and capital-intensive enterprise. Delays and failures are inevitable. But the return on investment in national morale and global standing can be immense. That is why Shukla’s mission matters. It signals that India no longer intends to sit out the great orbital contest.

The next Indian in space will not have to wait another generation. Thanks in part to Group Captain Shukla, the countdown has already begun.