Space

As a young, modern nation-state – an ‘underdog’ in the developing world – India has led the space research race with tremendous frugality and nimble innovation. In doing so, it has made a stellar claim for itself in what had hitherto remained a big boys’ club.

This is the fascinating story of India and Indians in space. Parallelly, this is also the story of how a developing nation, grappling with problems of the twentieth century such as poverty and hunger, slowly rose to become a world leader in space research. With Chandrayaan-3, what India achieved in its mission to the moon cost it half of what it cost Christopher Nolan to make Oppenheimer.

As India announces its most ambitious leap yet towards space exploration with Gaganyaan, all eyes are on it. Dinesh C. Sharma writes of this nothing-short-of-shocking journey spread over six decades of India in space research. Narrative science and human history at its very best, Space is a compelling account of the Indian space programme and the unsung biographies of Indian astronauts, their starbound journeys, failures and triumphs.