Skyroot Aerospace: How Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka Ignited India's Private Space Revolution
- BEF Editorial Desk
- Jul 19
- 6 min read
"Some people look at the stars with wonder. Others build the rockets that take humanity there."
On 18 July 2026, millions of Indians watched history unfold.
As Vikram-1 thundered into the skies from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, carrying satellites into orbit, the nation celebrated a technological milestone that many believed would define the next chapter of India's journey towards Viksit Bharat 2047.
The successful launch of Mission Aagaman was far more than the maiden orbital mission of Skyroot Aerospace.
It represented the confidence of a nation.
It represented the rise of India's private space ecosystem.
Most importantly, it represented the dreams of two engineers who refused to believe that rockets could only be built by governments.
Those engineers were Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka.
Today, they stand among the most inspiring entrepreneurs of modern India—not because they built another startup, but because they built an institution that is helping redefine India's place in the global space economy.
A New India is Taking Flight
The twentieth century belonged to steel, automobiles and telecommunications.
The early twenty-first century belonged to software, mobile technology and the internet.
The coming decades will belong to Artificial Intelligence, Space Technology, Robotics, Biotechnology, Advanced Manufacturing and Quantum Computing.
India cannot become a developed nation by 2047 by consuming these technologies alone.
It must build them.
It must own them.
It must export them.
That is why companies like Skyroot Aerospace matter.
They are not simply startups.
They are strategic national assets.
Two Scientists Who Chose Uncertainty Over Comfort
Long before Skyroot became one of India's most celebrated deep-tech startups, both founders were serving the nation as scientists at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
At ISRO, they worked alongside some of India's finest engineers on launch vehicle technologies and witnessed first-hand how decades of scientific excellence had transformed India into one of the world's most respected spacefaring nations.
But they also saw something else.
The global space industry was changing rapidly.
Private companies were beginning to democratize access to space.
Smaller satellites were creating new commercial opportunities.
Launch demand was increasing exponentially.
Countries around the world were encouraging private innovation alongside national space agencies.
The founders asked themselves a question that would change India's future:
"If private companies can build rockets elsewhere in the world, why not in India?"
The answer demanded courage.
Leaving ISRO meant walking away from one of the country's most respected scientific institutions.
It meant giving up stability.
It meant embracing uncertainty.
Yet history is rarely written by those who choose comfort.
In 2018, they founded Skyroot Aerospace in Hyderabad with a mission that seemed almost impossible—to build India's first private orbital launch company.
Building a Company That Didn't Exist
Starting a software company is difficult.
Starting a rocket company is exponentially harder.
Every component must perform flawlessly.
Every calculation must be precise.
Every launch carries years of engineering effort.
Failure is public.
Success is earned.
The founders had to assemble experts in propulsion, avionics, materials science, guidance systems, manufacturing, software, and mission operations.
They had to convince investors that India could build a globally competitive commercial launch company.
They had to build credibility before they built rockets.
Most importantly, they had to inspire young engineers to believe that India could lead the next era of space innovation.
The Power of India's Youth
Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Skyroot is not the rocket.
It is the people behind it.
Following the successful Vikram-1 launch, Pawan Kumar Chandana shared that the average age of the Skyroot team was just 28 years.
Think about that.
One of India's greatest engineering achievements was accomplished by a team younger than the average age in many established aerospace organizations.
This is the new India.
An India where young engineers are not waiting decades to change the world.
They are doing it today.
For every student sitting in a classroom wondering whether dreams matter, Skyroot sends a powerful message:
Your age does not define your impact.
Your ideas do.
Vikram-S: The Beginning of a New Era
Every historic achievement begins with a first step.
For Skyroot, that step was Vikram-S.
Its successful suborbital mission proved that an Indian private company could
independently design, manufacture and launch a rocket into space.
More importantly, it proved that India's private space ecosystem had arrived.
The launch inspired hundreds of young entrepreneurs, engineers and scientists to look at the space sector not merely as a government programme but as an entrepreneurial opportunity.
Mission Aagaman: When India Entered a New Orbit
Then came 18 July 2026.
Years of engineering.
Thousands of simulations.
Countless tests.
Moments of doubt.
Moments of hope.
Everything came together.
As Vikram-1 lifted off from Sriharikota, millions watched with anticipation.
Minutes later, India celebrated.
Skyroot had successfully placed payloads into orbit, making history as the first Indian private company to achieve an orbital rocket launch.
The launch was not just a victory for one startup.
It was a victory for Indian science.
Indian engineering.
Indian entrepreneurship.
Indian manufacturing.
Indian youth.
And for every citizen who believes India can lead the technologies of the future.
When the Prime Minister Called
Soon after the successful mission, Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally called the Skyroot team to congratulate them.
It was more than a ceremonial gesture.
It symbolized a new relationship between public institutions and private innovators.
During the conversation, Pawan Kumar Chandana shared that the average age of the team was just 28 years.
The Prime Minister praised the young engineers and remarked that they had validated his confidence in India's youth.
The message resonated across the country.
When India trusts its young innovators, extraordinary things become possible.
ISRO and Skyroot: Partners in Progress
Some view public institutions and private companies as competitors.
India has chosen a different model.
ISRO built the scientific foundation.
It developed world-class launch capabilities.
It trained generations of scientists.
Space sector reforms and institutions such as IN-SPACe created opportunities for private participation.
Companies like Skyroot are now building upon that foundation, bringing entrepreneurial agility, rapid innovation and commercial scale.
This is not competition.
It is collaboration.
And it represents one of the strongest models for nation building.
Building an Entire Space Economy
Skyroot is not merely launching rockets.
It is helping build an ecosystem.
Its work is creating demand for:
Advanced manufacturing
Precision engineering
Electronics
Carbon composites
Artificial Intelligence
Embedded systems
Satellite technology
Robotics
Additive manufacturing
Aerospace software
Supply chains
Research and Development
Each successful launch strengthens dozens of industries.
Each new aerospace company creates opportunities for thousands of suppliers, engineers, researchers and entrepreneurs.
This is how innovation multiplies economic growth.
The Future Belongs to Deep-Tech
India's first generation of startups transformed communication, payments, mobility and commerce.
The next generation will transform:
Space
Defence
Biotechnology
Climate Technology
Artificial Intelligence
Semiconductor Manufacturing
Robotics
Clean Energy
Skyroot represents this transition.
It is part of a new wave of Indian companies solving some of humanity's most complex engineering challenges.
What Skyroot Teaches Every Young Indian
The story of Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka is ultimately not about rockets.
It is about mindset.
It teaches us:
Dream beyond conventional careers.
Don't fear uncertainty.
Build technology that the world needs.
Respect science.
Invest in engineering excellence.
Build institutions instead of chasing quick success.
Believe that Indian innovation can lead globally.
Most importantly, it teaches that patriotism can be expressed through innovation.
Every breakthrough technology developed in India strengthens the nation.
Every globally competitive company expands India's influence.
Every entrepreneur solving hard problems contributes to nation building.
Skyroot Aerospace : Private Enterprise and the Vision of Viksit Bharat 2047
The vision of Viksit Bharat 2047 cannot be achieved by government alone.
Nor can it be achieved by private enterprise alone.
It requires collaboration.
Government creates vision, policy, infrastructure and scientific institutions.
Entrepreneurs convert those foundations into innovation, employment, exports and global competitiveness.
Companies like Skyroot Aerospace demonstrate how public policy and private innovation together can create entirely new industries.
If India builds hundreds of companies like Skyroot over the next two decades, it will not merely participate in the global space economy.
It will help lead it.
The Human Behind Viksit Bharat
History remembers those who expand the boundaries of possibility.
Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka did not inherit an aerospace company.
They built one.
They did not wait for someone else to create opportunities.
They created them.
They transformed years of scientific experience into entrepreneurial courage.
They inspired thousands of young Indians to believe that the future is not something we
inherit.
It is something we engineer.
As India marches toward Viksit Bharat 2047, the nation will need many more Skyroots.
Many more engineers.
Many more scientists.
Many more entrepreneurs willing to solve impossible problems.
The journey to a developed India will not be powered only by policies or capital.
It will be powered by dreamers who become builders.
By innovators who become institution builders.
By young Indians who refuse to accept that the impossible is impossible.
When Vikram-1 rose into the sky, it carried satellites into orbit.
But it also carried the aspirations of a new India—an India that is confident, innovative, self-reliant, globally competitive, and ready to shape the future of humanity.
That is the India Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka are helping build.
That is the spirit of Viksit Bharat 2047.
About Humans of Viksit Bharat
Humans of Viksit Bharat is a flagship editorial initiative of the Bharat Economic Forum, documenting the journeys of entrepreneurs, scientists, industrialists, innovators, policymakers, artists, investors, and institution builders whose ideas, leadership, and institutions are accelerating India's journey towards becoming a developed nation by 2047.
Every story in this series celebrates one belief:
Great nations are ultimately built by extraordinary people who dare to dream, build, and serve something larger than themselves.
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