Shubhanshu Shukla joined the National Defence Academy (NDA) at the age of 16.
The parents of Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla are filled with excitement and pride as their son is set to lift off to the International Space Station (ISS) tomorrow. Mr Shukla will be the first Indian astronaut to reach the ISS in 41 years - after Rakesh Sharma.
According to Mr Shukla's father, Shambhu Dayal Shukla, the astronaut has always been determined.
"Shubhanshu has always been the kind of person who, when he decides to do something, puts in all his hard work and dedication. He's been working hard for this mission, too. We wanted him to have a government job initially. But we never stopped him from following his dream, joining the force. We never even thought of saying no," Mr Shambhu told NDTV.
Mr Shukla joined the National Defence Academy (NDA) at the age of 16.
"He always kept preparing for one mission after another. We get to know when he has completed it. And then, he always strives to do more. We can never shout at him either, because no matter how angry we are, when he comes in front of us, we calm down naturally," Mr Shukla's father said.
The Indian astronaut's mother, Asha Shukla, told NDTV that he never used to go out of the house to play.
"He was brilliant at studying. He was never mischievous. There were no complaints from his teachers, they only used to praise him. But he never used to go out and play. He used to play at home with his sisters," Ms Shukla said.
She said that they are extremely excited for Mr Shukla's mission, which she cannot even express in words.
"It is a very emotional and proud moment for us. Till now, everyone used to remember Rakesh Sharma; now they will also remember Shubhanshu Shukla," she said.
Born in October 1985 in Lucknow, Mr Shukla's journey to the stars began in the classroom. He was inspired by the heroic soldiers during the Kargil War. Determined to serve his country, Mr Shukla cleared the UPSC NDA exam and earned a bachelor's in computer science from the NDA in 2004.
In 2006, he was commissioned into the Indian Air Force. He quickly distinguished himself as a combat leader and test pilot. In 2019, he was shortlisted by the Institute of Aerospace Medicine for ISRO's astronaut training group. In 2024, PM Modi officially announced his name as one of the four astronauts for the Gaganyaan mission.
The US-based Axiom Space is set to launch its Mission-4, carrying Mr Shukla, along with three others, from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on June 10 at 5:52 pm IST. The mission was deferred three times before. According to NASA, the delay was to "account for weather during vehicle transportation and completing final processing of the vehicle ahead of launch".
