Shah Rukh Khan has finally locked his dates for his first biopic Salute based on the life of Rakesh Sharma, the Indian Air Force pilot who flew aboard Soyuz T-11, launched on April 2, 1984. He was a part of the Intercosmos programme that made him the only Indian to travel into space. The biopic is directed by ad filmmaker Mahesh Mathai and produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur. Rakesh Sharma was selected to become a cosmonaut and go into space as a joint programme between the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the Soviet Intercosmos space program.

Rakesh Sharma was an Indian Air Force pilot and became the first Indian citizen to enter space when he flew aboard the Soviet rocket Soyuz T-11 on April 2, 1984. The three-member Soviet-Indian international crew comprised of ship’s commander Yury Malyshev and Flight Engineer Gennadi Strekalov besides Sharma.

RECOMMENDED READ: GAURI KHAN SHARES AN ADORABLE VIDEO OF SHAH RUKH KHAN ON COMPLETING 26 YEARS IN BOLLYWOOD

The crew held a joint news conference with officials in Moscow and then with then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who had asked Sharma how India looks from space and he had famously said, “Saare Jahaan Se Acha.”Sharma was awarded the honour of the Hero of the Soviet Union upon his return from space. He was also awarded the Ashoka Chakra, India’s highest peacetime gallantry award.

As reported by a leading daily, Shah Rukh will begin prep for the film in September and will shoot for two months until November end. The actor will then take a break for a month to promote his upcoming film Zero that also stars Anushka Sharma and Katrina Kaif. Zero is directed by Aanand L Rai and hits the screen on December 21. SRK is reported to resume shooting in January for the biopic which is expected to release next year. The makers have still not finalized the leading lady for the film and the names of several A-list actresses have been doing the rounds with no confirmation as yet.

Watch Rakesh Sharma's famous 'Saare Jahan Se Achcha' reply to Indira Gandhi:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0r4FX_z8kM