Why a white swan named ‘Joy’ is flying to space with Shubhanshu Shukla in the Axiom-4 mission

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla will become the first Indian astronaut to reach the ISS since 1984, aboard the Axiom-4 mission. Accompanying him is ‘Joy’, a white plush swan serving as the crew’s zero-gravity indicator and a symbolic tribute to Indian culture. Representing the vahana of Goddess Saraswati, Joy blends spirituality with space tradition. The mission highlights India’s growing role in global space exploration, backed by ISRO and SpaceX, and underscores the soft power of cultural symbolism in scientific frontiers.