Pakistani-origin NASA engineer Yasir Tufail has turned the story of film star Shah Rukh Khan into reality.
According to the report published on Arab News, Yasir was born and raised in Karianwala, a village near Gujrat in Punjab, Pakistan. His upbringing in a rural setting shaped his values of hard work, family commitment, and humility.
He was inspired by the stars in his childhood and moved to the United States in 2001, where he studied astronautical engineering at the University of Maryland.
Following his education, he became a full-time NASA engineer and worked on several major projects, notably the James Webb Space Telescope.
The “Shah Rukh Khan story” being referred to is related to the 2004 Bollywood film “Swades.”
In the film, Shah Rukh Khan’s character (Mohan Bhargava) is a NASA engineer working on the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite mission.
Amazingly, Yasir Tufail also worked on the same GPM mission during his career at NASA.
Yasir Tufail himself spoke about this coincidence, saying, “Believe it or not, eight years later, I was actually working on GPM.” He added that the coincidence made him feel that “life was imitating art.”
Yasir Tufail’s journey, from a small village to a key NASA mission, resembles the film’s story and is an inspiration for young Pakistanis.
Yasir has become an inspiration for students back home. He often participates in interviews, motivational talks, or media features explaining how persistence, education, and seizing opportunities can transform lives.
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