A Learning Experience-Never to be Forgotten
When he landed on the Moon, Neil Armstrong is known to have famously said that one small step for a man was actually a giant leap for the entire humankind. A genuinely great achievement by a single human being is not only meant for the self or for a particular segment of society or even for a particular country. It is meant for the entire humanity. This profound philosophy was brought home to the secondary and senior secondary level students of The Future Foundation School in a unique way on October 10,2025.
The Future Foundation School was selected as one of the few institutions across India, to participate in a special live interaction with Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, a distinguished officer of the Indian Air Force, accomplished test pilot, and the first Indian to visit the International Space Station as part of Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4). The session was organised by CISCE to celebrate the Group Captain’s birthday. The Future Foundation School was privileged to be selected to directly pose a question to this real life hero during the event.
In the profoundly enriching interactive session, Group Captain Shukla came across as a grounded and humble individual, notwithstanding his monumental achievements. With his personal charisma, disarming smile and impeccable articulation, he was able to connect with all the young and inquisitive minds effortlessly. His precise portrayal of various processes and experiences during his mission thrilled the students and held them in rapt attention. The questions that were posed to him subsequently were deep, meticulously researched and covered some very significant aspects of space research and its application in the betterment of the planet, its resources, climate and environment. Group Captain Shukla’s profound patriotism and humanism came out beautifully when he narrated his epiphany on looking at his motherland from space and his realisation that despite all sectarian and national fault lines, the planet Earth remains ‘the home’.
At the conclusion of this deeply absorbing and enriching programme, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla advised the students to remain curious, dream big and never to be intimidated by challenges or changes. Our common future lies in adaptability and sustainability, he unequivocally asserted.
Remarkably, his discourse had a deep resonance with Sri Aurobindo’s ideal of human unity and philosophy of integral education, the pivots around which The Future Foundation School has always been centred.
