‘Gajar ka halwa, moong dal halwa, aam ras' What Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla took to International Space Station
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian to reach the International Space Station (ISS), told Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday that he had taken gajar ka halwa, moong dal halwa, and aam ras with him to space so that fellow astronauts could experience the taste of Indian flavours. Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who is aboard the International Space Station as part of a commercial mission operated by Axiom Space, during an interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (PTI)
In a video interaction with Shukla, PM Modi congratulated him for hoisting the tricolour in space and asked warmly, 'Is everything fine there? Are you well? Did you carry gajar ka halwa?'
Responding with a smile, Shukla said, 'Yes, I brought gajar ka halwa, moong dal ka halwa, and aam ras. I wanted everyone who has joined me from other countries to enjoy the richness of Indian flavours. All of us had it together, and everyone liked it.'
Read: 'Sky is never the limit, not for me, you, or India': Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla tells PM Modi
As PM Modi hailed Shukla's space journey as the beginning of a new era and a step towards Mission Gaganyaan, the slogan 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' reverberated aboard the International Space Station (ISS). 'Farthest from India, closest to Indian hearts': PM Modi to astronaut Shukla
'Shubhanshu, today you are the farthest from the land of India, but the closest to the hearts of every Indian,' the prime minister told Shukla during a video interaction with the astronaut, who is currently stationed aboard the ISS orbiting Earth at an altitude of 400 km.
Modi remarked that Shukla's name itself contains the word 'shubh' (auspicious), and said, 'Your journey marks the auspicious beginning of a new era.'
Towards the end of their 18-minute conversation, PM Modi raised the patriotic slogan 'Bharat Mata ki Jai', which was echoed back by Shukla from space in a symbolic and emotional moment.
Read more: 'Shubh-aarambh' of new era: PM Modi interacts with Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla
Sharing his reflections from the mission, Shukla told the prime minister, 'This is not my journey alone but also our country's,' adding that he was 'absorbing these new experiences like a sponge.'
'Everything is different here,' the astronaut said, describing the challenges of life in microgravity.
Also read: 'India looks bigger from space than it does on map': Shubhanshu Shukla tells PM Modi
'We trained for a year and I learnt about different systems... but after coming here, everything changed... Here, even small things are different because there is no gravity in space... Sleeping here is a big challenge... It takes some time to get used to this environment,' he added.
He also mentioned that the ISS completes 16 orbits of Earth a day, giving him the rare privilege of witnessing 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets every day.
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