Podcast | Ravish, the Man Who Almost Became 1st Indian In Space

Twenty men were chosen. Two were left. But only one became the first Indian in space.

Air Commodore (retd) Ravish Malhotra speaks to The Quint on his experience training as a cosmonaut along side Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma who became the first Indian to travel to space. 

Image: The Quint

A fighter pilot and a war veteran, Air Commodore (retd.) Ravish Malhotra nearly became the first Indian in space. But fate, rather the authorities in Delhi where Indira Gandhi was Prime Minister, had other plans.

Ravish Malhotra was picked as the two finalists who trained in USSR for India’s first mission to space. Listen to his story on how he trained alongside Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma and ultimately lost out on making history to him.

Did it make him bitter? Nope. Instead, the experience gave him a lifetime of stories, some of which he shared with The Quint’s Arun Dev in August 2018.

Here’s an excerpt.