Original subtitles

Should the launch simulation

be successful today,

the review committee can proceed with locking

the Chandrayaan-3 profile.

I will push forward the budget request

so that on February 1st,

when the Finance Minister announces the budget,

we can show the world

that India will be the first country

to reach the lunar south pole.

Come on, Dr. Ramaiah.

Let's go to the Moon.

Trajectory check complete.

All parameters within tolerance.

Proceeding with final countdown.

Initiating launch simulation.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Thrust nominal.

Stage one burn proceeding as planned.

Guidance stable.

Pitch program on nominal trajectory.

Telemetry steady.

All sensors reporting nominal values.

Flight director, thrust profile not meeting nominal acceleration.

Trajectory deviation detected.

Overall velocity low.

What's wrong?

Checking.

Payload weight higher than expected.

Ascends lower than planned.

What's going on?

Telemetry confirms increased mass.

Telemetry confirms overcapacity issues.

- What? - Because of the modifications

made after the failure,

Chandrayaan's weight increased, sir.

But how? There isn't even an orbiter this time.

The legs and joints of Vikram have been strengthened.

And...

we've also added some components.

Uh...

It's the weight of a guarantee.

- How much? - 450 kilograms, sir.

Wow!

Our genius scientists

have failed the launch just to guarantee a landing.

It is just a simulation.

The whole point of it is to spot unseen errors.

And what's the point of my coming here?

To see these errors?

You've put in a ₹75 crore demand for the design, haven't you?

You'll get that

only when the review committee approves the mission.

The simulation has failed.

How am I supposed to get the budget approved?

Reduce the weight.

Otherwise, just sit at home and watch Russia get to the Moon

while singing "Ra-Ra-Rasputin."

What is the current weight of the rover?

Approximately 26 kilos, sir.

And what about the rover's ancillary stuff?

I mean, what's the weight for putting it in the lander?

600 kilos, sir. But why?

Can we do away with Pragyan?

But, sir, the rover was the heart of the mission.

Why should we give up a major discovery

just to win the landing race, sir?

It's not about discovery, Yamini.

It's about geopolitics!

- As the chief, I have to-- - But, sir, first it was Arjun

and now you're asking to remove the rover.

This is not the right solution.

Do you have another solution?

If you don't have one, don't take the moral high ground here.

Please.

Now, it's time to be realists,

not scientists.

What's the status of the resignation?

Just sending the resignation wasn't enough, Madhu.

I'll have to go and explain in person

why I don't want to be a scientist at ISRO.

Arjun.

You sure you don't want to wear your jacket?

I'll put it on.

Listen.

They're your college friends.

They won't grill you about the landing.

So, just cheer up, okay? And enjoy the party.

Hmm?

Hey, so you finally found the time, scientist!

Hey, Rohan.

- The place looks amazing! - Oh, thank you.

I'm so glad you could come.

- How are you? Great to meet you! - Hi. All well.

Same here. And congratulations, it's beautiful.

Thank you so much.

I've been calling him for so long.

But he kept putting it off because of his project!

What happened finally?

The project failed.

Come on, man. I'm just kidding.

- Yeah. - Come.

I wanted to introduce you

- to my friends. - Yeah, of course.

Guys, this is Arjun, Madhvi.

- Hi. - This is Meenal.

She's getting worn out in consulting.

This is Awais.

- Hi, Awais. - Founder of Pixxel.

- Hello. - It's a space tech company

that's building a constellation of imaging satellites

around the Earth.

And this here is my friend, Arjun.

He's absolutely rocking it at ISRO as a scientist.

ISRO? Very nice.

Seems like we're both sending stuff to space.

Say what you want,

but the real deep-tech work is being done

by your friend Arjun and Pixxel.

All right, man. If you say so.

You okay?

Don't worry.

Even you will imagine a future after ISRO. For sure.

There was so much to achieve.

I was an idiot for wanting to be a scientist.

It's good that I resigned.

- I'll get a drink. - Let's get some stronger drinks.

- Yeah. - Yeah, please.

After you.

Rohit.

- Madhvi, he's resigned? - Hmm?

Well, totally understandable.

They probably made it tough for him after the Chandrayaan failure.

Anyhow...

You tell me.

How are you? What have you been up to?

Nothing fancy. Same old stuff.

Shaping the worldview of seventh and eighth graders.

Some want to become founders like you and make money,

while others want to serve the nation.

You don't have to spend your whole life

in government offices to serve the nation.

Start-ups create huge wealth for the employees. Am I right?

Absolutely right.

I've been telling you forever

to move on from these government jobs.

Russia, Europe and other space agencies

are way ahead of where we are.

Come work for me.

- Yeah. - What do you mean?

Our work culture is quite positive.

No blame games at all.

And you have a solid background.

You'll get all the glory in the office

for your experience as an ML scientist.

Rohan, I...

I have no experience in your line of work.

Oh, come on.

I figured out your talent ages ago while copying your assignments.

I'll connect you with my CTO.

You'll be up to speed in no time.

- The CTO already? - Yes.

Just think about it.

We've raised a lot of funds.

Your CTC will be in crores.

10x.

- It's huge, right? - Yeah.

You two should discuss it.

Tell me in a week.

A week.

Cheers!

New recruits! ISRO is known for doing big things.

In 2017,

we broke the world record by launching 104 satellites at once.

But now we're counting on you,

the next generation, who will take it forward.

Hi. I'm Jairam Shetty.

I'm a government hardware engineer.

And I designed the Pragyan rover for Chandrayaan.

Thank you, thank you.

I look forward to learning from you as well.

Now, before we start, I want to ask you a question.

In Chandrayaan, what role

does the Pragyan rover play? Anybody?

Erm...

Yes?

Sir, the rover could have left the Vikram lander

and explored the Moon's surface for Lithium and Helium-3.

It could have even produced rocket fuel,

aiding progress in space.

Great answer.

Just one small change.

Not, "could have."

Say, "It will."

Even on the mission with Chandrayaan-3.

Putting past failures behind them,

they are fully engaged in preparing for Chandrayaan-3.

But the key question is, will the government

show faith and release funds in the budget,

or will it just make them wait?

And if that happens,

Russia is almost certain to reach the Moon before India.

Hmm.

Did you track ISRO news all day

or think about what to do next?

Why even think?

Rohan even sent the offer letter to me.

- What? - Hmm.

Are you serious?

You sure you want to do this?

Of course.

This 2 BHK, a small car, petty blame games...

How long?

I mean, I can do better than all of this.

Right?

I'll have a big house, a big car,

a life like Rohan, and you'll finally be proud of me.

What?

What do you mean?

What are you saying, Arjun?

I've always been proud of you.

Besides, you always say Rohan is a phony.

He keeps trying to poach you all the time.

But the offer is real, right?

He wasn't simply rambling at the party.

He really wants me, Madhu.

Yeah, but is this what you really want?

Or is it just the money that he's offering?

I just don't get why you're against all of this.

- Against? I-- - You know everything.

You know what I'm going through.

Arjun, Yamini ma'am personally called and clarified

that your name not being on the list was a genuine mistake.

Forget about it. Let it go.

Let it go?

Ever since the C2 failure,

everyone's been on my case about my mistakes.

What about that, Madhu?

I'm sure the work and work culture at this start-up

will be better than here.

If this start-up really mattered to you,

you'd be reading up on it rather than watching ISRO news.

So, don't fool me.

I know where your heart is.

My heart is where I'm respected as a scientist, Madhu.

All right.

Jairam has been calling continuously.

Please just call him back.

Sir.

Sir, you know we are not doing the right thing by removing Pragyan.

Sometimes, what's more important than doing the right thing is

doing things right.

Sir, during Chandrayaan-1,

Doctor sahab had encouraged a young scientist

to pursue the discovery of water on the Moon.

That discovery made him the VSSC chief.

And today, he's the chief of ISRO.

Why is he not doing the same thing for other scientists, sir?

A scientist's true glory lies in their discoveries, right?

Enough, Yamini.

We can't keep discussing the same thing every day.

Unless you find a solution,

the rover will have to be removed.

In that case, challenge accepted, sir.

I will get it done by the review meeting.

I hope you do, Yamini.

I really hope so.

Hey, watch out!

Okay. Next team, get ready.

Yes, sir.

Our sounding rocket went up just like that.

Sir, you're here?

Sorry, I couldn't meet you for the past two weeks.

Been a bit tied up.

The resignation process here is so paperwork-heavy,

I could retire before it even gets approved.

- May I? - Sure.

Some really interesting ideas here.

How much weight reduction is possible?

Sir, around 100 kilograms.

- 100. - But what good are these ideas, sir?

The scientist who could execute them is leaving.

What time is the review meeting tomorrow?

Sir, it's at 2:00 p.m. tomorrow.

When is your exit interview?

At 11 o'clock in the morning.

Shall we hang out later in the evening?

No, sir.

Orientation's happening tomorrow.

You gave a speech last time.

You inspired people to become scientists

and now you're moving on.

Okay! Tara!

- Your team! - Yes, sir.

Sir, we've designed the nose cone of this sounding rocket

with improved aerodynamics.

This could also increase the launch capacity.

Its shape reduces drag significantly,

which improves fuel efficiency.

The materials used are also composite.

Light-weight, but extremely durable.

Scientific advisor Dr. Mohanty held a meeting

with the Finance Minister.

Is ISRO going to receive the budget for Chandrayaan-3 this year?

We'll find out in the next 48 hours.

I'm sorry. I'm late, Arjun.

Oh, I just...

I'll get it.

I'm sorry, Arjun. I haven't slept all night.

In a failed effort to save the Pragyan rover.

Yet, it was of no use.

Did you learn Russian during your notice period?

I was just looking at the pointed nose cone rocket.

What's this for?

Seeing the Russian agency's arrogance,

I was wondering when we will have an agency

that gets an unlimited budget.

Let's start!

Jairam, let's not wait. Just start.

The proposal suggests taking

the Pragyan rover off the Chandrayaan-3 mission.

Sir, without Pragyan,

Chandrayaan-3 will be 600 kilograms lighter

and 5% cheaper.

In this situation, this option is in the nation's best interest.

Sorry, sir, but the nation's interest will be served

only if Pragyan goes to the Moon and makes a scientific discovery.

Dr. Ramaiah, this is your project director.

What is she saying?

Yamini, the proposal itself is without the rover.

As per your permission,

I have found another solution to reduce the weight.

What permission?

What solution?

The fix is to take out the 5th engine

from the Vikram lander.

Sir, that alone will reduce 300 kilograms.

But by turning off the four engines

and starting the fifth engine,

only then will a soft landing be possible.

If I use only four engines and run these two engines

at half capacity, like a coffee machine,

we can achieve a soft landing.

Sir, this regulatory mechanism

has already been demonstrated in the debris manoeuvre.

Even then, it only cuts 300 kilograms.

Sir, we can cut 100 kilograms in cabling as well.

I conducted a new study together with the trainees.

Dr. Ramaiah.

What game are you playing by passing these files around?

That still only reduces 400 kilograms.

That's 200 kilograms less than before.

If you and your team don't have a solution,

then maybe we should just give up

and take the rover out.

This is the only way to outmanoeuvre Russia

and win at geopolitics.

This is the only solution!

There's another solution, sir.

What?

The new design is similar to this one.

The rocket's capacity can increase from 200 to 300 kilograms.

Sir, this is the new "nose cone" design.

Jairam has also prepared an experimental report on this.

Even Russia has been using this type of design in their rockets.

Our American vendors are ready to supply the materials.

How much is that?

600 kilograms.

If we're lucky, 700, sir.

Dr. Mohanty.

Looks like

my scientists just aren't sold

on taking the rover out.

Because my team believes in discovery.

And you'll agree with me, sir.

A scientist's true glory

lies in their discoveries.

And in a scientist's glory,

lies the nation's glory.

So, we shall lock the Chandrayaan-3 mission profile

with Pragyan.

Still want an approval on your resignation? Hmm?

Well done, Yamini.

Today, you have not just succeeded

as a scientist, but also as a leader.

I know this is a bit last-minute, but if possible,

you should give

the speech this evening.

Good job, Arjun.

When I was as young as my daughter,

I loved

to stay late in the library to read books.

One night, I was so lost in my book

that I came home very late.

It was very dark

and my bicycle crashed into a ditch.

I was hurt pretty badly.

My mom got scared just by looking at me.

She said that there wasn't any need

to repair the bicycle. Get rid of it.

And Dad told me to stop going to the library from then on.

I didn't let Mom and Dad's fear get to me.

In fact, I went to the library to look for solutions.

One day, I came across a physics book

that explained how moving a magnet around a coil of wire

can generate electricity.

I thought,

what if I apply this scientific principle

of Michael Faraday

to the bicycle's motion?

That was it!

I joined the dynamo to the bicycle's wheel,

and as I started pedalling, a small flickering light

started showing me the way home from the library.

As scientists,

your bicycles will break loads of times in your journey.

And it will leave you disappointed.

But you have to learn to take it in your stride.

Because every unfortunate incident

shows you a new opportunity.

It pushes you to discover new knowledge,

to unlock new wisdom,

and to stay curious.

Isn't it why we became scientists?

To light paths of humanity

with bulbs of wisdom.

Yamini,

mission profile has been submitted to the FM.

An important announcement.

In the past week,

the speed at which this pandemic has spread across the world

is now making its presence felt in our country as well.

Taking note of this,

the Government of India

has decided to halt all activities and work

across the nation.

We urge everyone to stay at home,

take good care of your own health

and the health of your loved ones.

For this nationwide restriction,

the government has also given a name...

Lockdown!