Co-astronaut Nair likens Shubhanshu Shukla's return from space to Diwali

Astronaut Prashanth Balakrishnan Nair on Thursday likened Shubhanshu Shukla's return to India after a successful space mission to the festival of Diwali, which is celebrated to mark Lord Ram's return to Ayodhya.

Group Captain Nair, who was the backup astronaut for Shukla for the Axiom-4 mission, also likened himself to Laxman, the younger brother of Lord Ram.

"A few months from now, we will celebrate Diwali. That's the time when Shri Ram entered Ayodhya. We are here right now with Ram that is Shux, and I can call myself Laxman. It feels like Diwali today, and all our countrymen are here to receive us," Nair said at a press conference here.

Shukla, who had the callsign 'Shux' during the Axiom-4 mission, and Nair returned to India earlier this week after nearly a year-long stay in the US, during which they trained for the mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

"Remember, I am elder to Shux. But I would love to be Laxman to this Ram every day. Ram and Laxman got a lot of help from the Vanar Sena, that is our fantastic ISRO team. Thank you, Hanuman and the team," Nair said, referring to ISRO Chairman V Narayanan and other scientists.

Nair also made light of questions on whether he felt that he should have travelled on the Axiom-4 mission instead of Shukla.

"I am an Indian Air Force fighter pilot. So, we learn something as a fighter pilot. It's not just important to lead. It's very important to be a good wingman," Nair said.

"The reason that a person is able to drop his weapon or fire his missile is because 'his six' is taken care of," Nair said, referring to the term used in the armed forces to have someone's back.

"It is even more important that you have made a very great contribution to make sure that what he has done has been part of your efforts also. More importantly, I say with full conviction that the reason we are ahead of the rest of the world is because we have got this consciousness," said Nair, who is among the four astronaut-designates short-listed for the Gaganyaan mission.

India plans to undertake its first human spaceflight in 2027 and build its own space station by 2035. India also aims to land its own astronaut on the moon by 2040.