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From pride he took in putting up the Indian flag on the International Space Station (ISS) to the experiments he would be conducting, and the challenges of living in the microgravity experiment — Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla discussed it all with Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the space laboratory. PM Modi started the interaction stating: “Today, you are far away from your motherland but you are close to the heart of your countrymen. Your name has the word ‘shubh’ in it and your journey is the ‘shubharambh’ of a new age.”
Pilot Shukla — along with the commander Peggy Whitson and mission specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary — entered the ISS around 5:45 pm on Thursday. The Axiom-4 mission carrying the astronauts lifted off from Florida’s Kennedy Space Centre nearly 28 hours before, after facing several delays due to technical problems, inclement weather, and a leak on the ISS.
Themed ‘Realise the Return’, this is the first stint of the astronauts from three countries on the ISS.
Describing his experience on the ISS, Shukla said that while the training had prepared him for everything, it all felt different once he was in space. He said: “Everything changes once we are here because gravity is absent. We are used to gravity. While I am talking to you right now, my feet have been tied, otherwise I would float up. Everything is different — drinking water… walking. Sleeping is a challenge — you can sleep on the roof, you can sleep on the walls, you can sleep on the floor… It takes time to get used to,” he said.
PM @narendramodi interacted with Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who is aboard the International Space Station. pic.twitter.com/Q37HqvUwCd
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) June 28, 2025
He also said that he gets to witness 16 sunsets and sunrises every day, while travelling at the speed of around 28,000 km per hour. “We are not able to perceive this speed because we are inside, but it shows the pace at which our country is moving ahead,” Shukla said.
Shukla also informed the Prime Minister that he had shared the ‘gajar ka halwa’, ‘moong daal halwa’, and ‘aamras’ with his fellow astronauts. “I wanted others to taste and experience the rich culinary heritage of India. And they really enjoyed it,” he said.
With the success of Chandrayaan-3 — and the country’s ambitions to send a human to the moon — the PM asked Shukla what his message to the youth would be. In response, Shukla said: “I would say, there is not just one path to success, what is common, however, is never stop trying.”
The PM also said that he likes to give homework to all, so for Shubhanshu it would be absorbing all the knowledge and helping in the onward journey of the country’s space programme. Shukla said that he has been absorbing the lessons like a sponge and hopes to help with the country’s own spaceflight programme. “My friends here have asked when we can go on Gaganyaan,” Shukla said, adding that he was very happy and emotional to have put up the Indian flag on the ISS on Friday. The conversation ended with Shukla saying ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’.
