Born on March 9, 1934, Yuri Gagarin is recognised worldwide as the first person to have travelled to outer space. Coming from a small village near Moscow, Gagarin was fascinated by flights from an early age.  Photo: AFP

In April 1961, Gagarin was selected as the pilot for the first ‘Vostok’ human mission. It was launched in southern Kazakhstan. From here, Gagarin orbited the earth for 108 minutes and landed back in Kazakhstan. Photo: iStock

Gagarin had to undergo an elite training process which included heavy physical and psychological endurance, to become the pilot of the first manned mission. Photo: AFP

When Vostok 1 took off, this pilot said, “Poyekhali!” that roughly means ‘Let’s go.’ This marked the start of a space age for the world. Photo: AFP

Following this feat, this soviet pilot became an international celebrity and was recognised as a hero of the Soviet Union by Nikita Khrushchev, a Soviet Union leader. Photo: AFP

In November of the same year, while on a world tour, Yuri Gagarin visited India along with his wife Valentina Goryacheva to celebrate the feat. The couple was received with great cheer and pomp by a large number of Indians at the Delhi airport. Photo: AFP

Former Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru played host to the cosmonaut and his wife at his Delhi residence, Teen Murti Bhawan. While he was here, Gagarin visited many cities like Mumbai, Lucknow and Hyderabad as part of the tour. Photo: AFP

On March 27, 1968, the cosmonaut breathed his last at the young age of 34 years when a routine training flight went wrong and his MiG-15UTI crashed. Photo: AFP