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ELITERetiredISRO
ELITERetiredISROISRO·🇮🇳 India·Born 1949
Rakesh Sharma
First Indian citizen in space (April 3, 1984)
190h
Hours in Space
1
Missions
0
EVAs
—
EVA Time
Saare jahan se accha (Better than the whole world).
The earth looks magnificent from out there. There are no boundaries visible — no countries, no states.
Inspirations
What they aspire to
He hopes India will routinely send its own astronauts to space aboard Indian rockets.
Biography
First and only Indian citizen to travel to space. When asked how India looked from space, he famously replied: 'Sare jahan se achha' (better than the whole world).
Before NASAIndian Air Force test pilot who flew 21 combat missions in MiG-21s during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, later serving as Chief Test Pilot at HAL Nashik and Bangalore.
Records & Firsts
Notable accomplishments by Rakesh Sharma
- First Indian citizen in space (April 3, 1984)
Mission Timeline
- Research Cosmonaut
Soyuz T-11
Soyuz T-11 / Salyut 7
Launch: Apr 3, 1984Landing: Apr 11, 1984Duration: 7 days- First Indian in space; visited Salyut 7 station
Beyond the Mission
Hobbies & Interests
yogareadinggolf
Causes They Champion
Promoting Indian human spaceflight (Gaganyaan)Mentoring young Indian aviators
Languages
HindiPunjabiEnglishRussian
Awards & Honors
- Ashok Chakra
- Hero of the Soviet Union
- Order of Friendship of Peoples
Fun fact
He performed yoga in microgravity to test its effectiveness against space adaptation syndrome — the first such experiment in orbit.
From the cockpit
“Saare jahan se accha — spoken in reply to PM Indira Gandhi's question about how India looked from space.”
Learn More
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