Skyroot Aerospace co-founder and CEO Pawan Kumar Chandana has shared an emotional note about the first phone call he made after Vikram-1, India's first privately developed orbital-class rocket, successfully completed its historic mission. It was not to a colleague or government official, but to his father.

On July 18, the Vikram-1 mission marked a breakthrough for India's private space sector after successfully reaching orbit. As the excitement of the successful mission began to settle, Chandana shared a deeply personal note about the milestone.

"As everything slowly begins to sink in, and after finally getting some sleep last night, I wanted to share a small personal note," Chandana said.

The first call he made after Vikram-1's success was to the man who had believed in him long before anyone else: “The first call I made after Vikram-1 successfully reached orbit was to my Dad. He is the man who made my journey possible - with dreams for me far bigger than the ones I had for myself, and by simply never giving up on me.”

Chandana also revealed that he had struggled academically during his early school years.

"Until my 8th standard, I was a bad student. I scored 51 marks in Maths and even failed another subject. Back then, I could never have imagined that I would one day make it to an IIT - or have the privilege of contributing to India's first privately developed rocket reaching orbit, making India only the third country in the world to achieve this," he wrote.

Recalling his father's reaction, Chandana said the conversation was filled with silence and emotion.

"When I called him after the launch, he just cried. And cried. He couldn't speak a single word. But I understood every word he couldn't say," he said.

The Skyroot CEO admitted he had managed to hold back his emotions during the mission, but not while writing about it.

"I managed to hold back my tears when Vikram-1 reached orbit. But somehow, writing this, I can't. Thank you, Dad," he wrote.

He concluded his note with a tribute to fathers who continue to believe in their children despite setbacks.

"A big shoutout to every dad who dreams big for their children- and never gives up on them," he added, sharing a photograph with his father from one of his birthdays after starting Skyroot Aerospace.

Read the entire post here:

Born and raised in a middle-class family in Hyderabad, Chandana developed an early fascination with machines despite struggling in school. Encouraged by his father, he eventually cracked the IIT entrance exam on his first attempt, graduated from IIT Kharagpur and was recruited directly into ISRO, where he worked on the GSLV Mk III before co-founding Skyroot Aerospace.

That journey culminated in Mission Aagaman, which saw Skyroot Aerospace launch Vikram-1 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC-SHAR) in Sriharikota. India's first privately developed orbital-class rocket not only completed its flight successfully but also deployed its satellite payload as planned, with all four stages performing nominally on their first attempt.

The achievement placed India among a select group of countries where private companies have independently developed and launched orbital rockets, marking a defining moment for the country's commercial space industry.

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Published On:

Jul 22, 2026 14:14 IST