Who Is Arvinder Singh Bahal? Agra-Born Investor To Fly On Blue Origin Mission Today

Arvinder "Arvi" Singh Bahal, a real estate investor from Agra, is set to fly to space with Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin. The mission, named NS-34 is scheduled to be launched from West Texas on Sunday.

The 79-year-old will be one of the few Indian-origin civilians to travel beyond the Karman line, the internationally recognised boundary of space.

The flight is part of Blue Origin's New Shepard space tourism programme. So far, the programme has flown 70 people to space. NS-34 will carry a diverse, international crew.

Other NS-34 crew members include tech entrepreneur Justin Sun, Turkish businessman Gokhan Erdem, Puerto Rican meteorologist Deborah Martorell, British teacher Lionel Pitchford, and venture capitalist JD Russell.

Who Is Arvinder Singh Bahal?

1. Arvinder Singh Bahal was born on October 13, 1945, in Agra.
2. He grew up near the Taj Mahal and now lives in Beverly, Massachusetts, US.
3. He has been a naturalised US citizen since 1979, after obtaining a Green Card in 1977.
4. He is the president of Bahal Properties, a real estate company he led since 1975, as per his Linkedin profile.
5. He built successful ventures in fashion, sportswear, hospitality, and real estate over the past 45+ years.
6. He got married in 1979 and has two children and four grandchildren.
7. He initially joined India's National Defense Academy in 1962 but left due to a polo accident that caused partial hearing loss.
8. He later worked on a Scottish-owned tea plantation in Darjeeling for nearly four years.
9. By 1970, he ventured into the garment manufacturing business near Delhi.
10. He has visited all 196 countries across all seven continents. He has been to both the North and South Poles. He has skydived over Mount Everest and the Pyramids of Giza.
11. He holds a private pilot's licence and is trained to fly helicopters.
12. He is fluent in six languages.
13. His travels include remote regions such as Greenland, Patagonia, North Korea, and major deserts like the Sahara. His photography work has earned global media coverage.
14. He describes himself as a lifelong adventurer.
15. He recently wrote his first book, Tireless Traveler, with more publications planned.