Narendra Modi interacts with Shubhanshu Shukla abroad the International Space Station via video conference

"Aapke naam mein bhi shubh hai aur aapki yatra naye yug ka shubharambh bhi hai (Even your name carries the word shubh (auspicious), and your journey marks a new and hopeful beginning, a shubh aarambh, for the youth of our nation)," PM Modi told Shukla during the interaction.

"Today, you are away from our motherland, but you are the closest to the hearts of Indians," the PM told him congratulating on behalf of the 1.4 billion Indians. 

"My voice carries the enthusiasm and excitement of all 1.4 billion Indians," the PM said. 

Shukla said: "A short while ago, when I was looking out of the window, we were flying over Hawaii. We see sunrise and sunset 16 times a day from the orbit...Our nation is moving forward at a very great pace..." He said "everything is different here".

Sharing an image of their conversation, PMO India, the official X handle of the PM, said: "PM @narendramodi interacted with Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who is aboard the International Space Station."

Modi earlier said Shubhanshu Shukla, who became the first Indian to travel to space in 40 years, is carrying the aspirations of 1.4 billion people.

Modi has welcomed the successful launch of the Axiom-4 Mission by India, Poland, Hungary and the United States.

In an X post, the Prime Minister wrote, "We welcome the successful launch of the Space Mission carrying astronauts from India, Hungary, Poland and the US.

"The Indian Astronaut, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is on the way to become the first Indian to go to International Space Station. He carries with him the wishes, hopes and aspirations of 1.4 billion Indians. Wish him and other astronauts all the success!"

The Axiom-4 Mission was launched from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday after multiple delays.

Shukla piloted a SpaceX Dragon aircraft which was launched for the space expedition.

He is accompanied by mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski (Poland), Tibor Kapu (Hungary) and Commander Peggy Whitson (United States).

Rakesh Sharma the inspiration

Indian astronaut Rakesh Sharma had spent eight days in orbit as a part of the Soviet mission to Space in 1984.

Shukla, who hails from the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, is a fighter pilot for 15 years.

"I grew up reading about Rakesh Sharma in textbooks and listening to his stories from space. I was deeply impressed by him," said Shukla and added, "This journey has been a long one for me. It started out somewhere I didn't know that this is the path I am going to finally take."

"The way this worked out for me was that probably a week before we arrived at Axiom was the time I came to know that I would be going. I was extremely excited to be here. I was very, very happy, because this was a possibility for me to actually fly to space. You do not know how to respond to such things," the 40-year-old astronaut added.