R Madhavan had recently drawn much criticism for his remarks that the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) “used information in the Panchangam (Hindu calendar)” to launch the PSLV C-25 rocket on Mars. Now reacting to the trolling, Madhavan has said that he ‘deserves’ it.
“I deserve it to call Panchang in Tamil as ‘Panchang’. Very unknown to me. However this cannot take away the fact that what was achieved by us in Mars mission with just 2 engines. In itself A record. @NambiNOfficial development engine is a rockstar,” he tweeted.
madhavan The comment was made during the promotion of Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, the actor’s directorial debut. In a video that has gone viral on social media platforms, Madhavan is heard saying in Tamil, “Indian rockets did not have the three engines (solid, liquid and cryogenic) that would help Western rockets propel themselves into Mars orbit. We do. Since it was lacking in India, we used the information in the Panchang.
He further added, “It has a celestial map with all the information on the various planets, gravitational pull, luminosity deflection of the Sun, etc. All of which were calculated completely thousands of years ago. So the launch was calculated using this information.” The rocket was launched and it went around the Earth, Moon and Jupiter’s moon. It jumped like a sporting thing and entered the orbit of Mars.” The video was translated by singer TM Krishna, who sang Madhavan. Taking a dig at the remarks and tweeted, “Disappointed that ISRO has not published this important information on their website. Time to consider Mangal Panchang as well.”
Rocketry: The Nambi Effect is written and produced by Madhavan, who plays the lead role of Nambi Narayanan, a scientist and aerospace engineer working at ISRO. The film, slated to release in cinemas across the world on July 1, will also feature Shah Rukh Khan and Suriya in cameo appearances.
