Rakesh Sharma Status: Retired 1/13/1949 – Nationality: Indian Type: Government Agency: Russian Federal Space Agency (ROSCOSMOS) Rakesh Sharma (born 13 January 1949) is a former Indian Air Force pilot who flew aboard Soyuz T-11, launched on 2 April 1984, as part of the Interkosmos programme. Sharma is the first Indian citizen to travel in space.