Swollen faces, slowed heartbeats, backaches: Shubhanshu Shukla on hidden toll of space travel

New Delhi: Swollen faces, slowed heartbeats, painful backaches and loss of appetite were some of the realities Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla said he faced in orbit, far removed from the glamorous image of space travel is often associated with.

Speaking at an event organised by the FICCI CLO, Shukla said life on the International Space Station (ISS) was a gruelling test of human endurance that offered powerful lessons in resilience, teamwork and perseverance.

"Now you might imagine that space missions are thrilling from the very beginning, which, to be honest, they are. But once you reach in microgravity, your body is in a microgravity environment. It rebels because it has never seen that environment, everything changes," he said.

"The blood shifts upwards, your head becomes puffier, your heart slows down, your spine elongates and you have backaches. Inside (your body), your stomach is also floating and so are its contents, so you don't feel hungry. All these changes happen the moment you reach space," Shukla said.

He recalled a particularly difficult moment when just before an interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he was battling nausea and a headache.

"You cannot even take medication because nausea drugs make you drowsy. So you feel bad and you still have to do the work," Shukla said, noting that one of his crew members quietly set up his camera and microphone. "That is teamwork, not in words but in action." Shukla explained that astronauts must rely on one another in countless small ways -- from crewmates setting up a fan near his face during long experiments in a glove box to passing a bottle of water when he was trapped for hours.

"These small gestures indicate how important teamwork is," he said. "Collaboration is not optional, it is essential. You do not go to space alone, you ride on the shoulders of many." Beyond the physical discomfort, Shukla said the emotional impact of space travel was profound.

He described looking down at Earth and spotting India as a deeply-moving experience. "Of all the places on Earth, India looks the most beautiful when seen from above. The coastlines and plains stand out.... It is truly saare jahan se acha.... In those moments, the connection to home feels overwhelming," he remarked.

Shukla said the real legacy of space missions lies not only in science but in representation and inspiration. He recounted how children he met in Lucknow admitted that they only learned about the ISS when he went there.

"They told me, 'We cared because you were there'. That moment hit me like gravity itself. Your presence in boardrooms, labs, parliaments and even in space capsules is not just symbolic, it is catalytic," he said.

Shukla also talked about perseverance in the face of rejection, sharing the story of American astronaut Peggy Whitson, who applied to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) 10 times before finally being selected and went on to set records.

"Even if the world says no nine times, the 10th yes can change history," he said.

Looking ahead, Shukla pointed to India's ambitious plans of the Gaganyaan mission and a lunar presence by 2040 as milestones that would propel the country forward.

"Make no mistake, this will take much more than rockets and spacecraft. It will take the energy of the entire nation," he said.

Shukla reminded the audience that space exploration is about lifting spirits as much as lifting rockets.

"When we send a few to orbit, we lift millions back here on Earth. Sky was never the limit -- not for me, not for you and not for Bharat," he said.