Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (/ˈəbdʊl kəˈlɑːm/ ⓘ; 15 October 1931 – 27 July 2015) was an Indian aerospace scientist and statesman who served as the president of India from 2002 to 2007.

Kalam was elected as the president of India in 2002 with the support of both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the then-opposition Indian National Congress.

Marakayar are a Muslim ethnic group found in coastal Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka who claim descent from Arab traders and local women.

The family business had involved trading goods and transporting passengers between the Indian mainland and the Pamban island and to and from Sri Lanka.

[12][13][14] In his school years, Kalam got average grades but was described as a bright and hardworking student and someone with a strong desire to learn by his teachers.

"[16] Later, he narrowly missed out on his dream of becoming a fighter pilot, as he placed ninth in qualifiers, and only eight positions were available in the Indian Air Force.

[17] This was my first stage, in which I learnt leadership from three great teachers—Dr Vikram Sarabhai, Prof Satish Dhawan and Dr Brahm Prakash.

[3] He was interviewed and recruited into Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) by H. G. S. Murthy, the first director of the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station.

[23][24] In May 1974, Kalam was invited by Raja Ramanna to witness the country's first nuclear test Smiling Buddha as the representative of Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory, even though he was officially not part of the project.

Despite the disapproval of the union cabinet, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi allotted funds for these aerospace projects under Kalam's directorship through her discretionary powers.

[34] However, the director of the site test, K. Santhanam, said that the thermonuclear bomb had been a "fizzle" and criticised Kalam for issuing an incorrect report.

[39] On 10 June 2002, the National Democratic Alliance which was in power at the time, expressed its intention to nominate Kalam for the post of the President of India.

[45]On 18 June, Kalam filed his nomination papers in the Indian Parliament, accompanied by then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and senior cabinet members.

[46] He faced off against Lakshmi Sahgal, and the polling for the presidential election was held on 15 July 2002, in the Indian parliament and the state assemblies, with the media predicting a win for Kalam.

[56][57][58] In September 2003, during an interactive session at PGIMR in Chandigarh, Kalam asserted the need of Uniform Civil Code in India, keeping in view the population of the country.

[85] In 2011, Kalam voiced his support towards the establishment of the nuclear power plant at Koodankulam in Tamil Nadu, giving assurances for the safety of the facility.

[87] In May 2012, Kalam launched a programme called What Can I Give Movement aimed at the youth of India with a central theme of defeating corruption.

Despite being placed in the intensive care unit, he was confirmed dead of a sudden cardiac arrest at 7:45 p.m.[93][94] His purported last words to his aide Srijan Pal Singh were: "Funny guy!

[103][104][105] On 30 July 2015, the former president was laid to rest at Rameswaram's Pei Karumbu ground with full state honours with over 350,000 people in attendance.

[118] Kalam enjoyed writing Tamil poetry, playing the veena (an Indian string instrument),[119] and listening to Carnatic devotional music every day.

[120] He never owned a television, and was in the habit of rising at 6:30 or 7 a.m. and sleeping by 2 a.m.[121] His personal possessions included a few books, a veena, clothing, a compact disc player and a laptop.

Henceforth, I intend to share with them experiences, helping them to ignite their imagination and preparing them to work for a developed India for which the road map is already available."

"[127][128] Such early exposure convinced Kalam that the answers to India's multitudinous issues lay in "dialogue and cooperation" among the country's religious, social, and political leaders.

[133][134] In 2002, in one of his early speeches to Parliament after becoming the president, he reiterated his desire for a more united India, stating that "During the last one year I met a number of spiritual leaders of all religions ... and I would like to endeavour to work for bringing about unity of minds among the divergent traditions of our country".

These five areas are closely inter-related and if advanced in a coordinated way, will lead to food, economic and national security.Kalam described a "transformative moment" in his life in his book Transcendence: My Spiritual Experiences with Pramukh Swamiji.

[150] In September 2014, India and the United States launched the Fulbright-Kalam climate fellowship which enabled six Indian doctoral students and researchers to work with institutions in the US for a period of 6–12 months.

[154] In 2017, researchers at the NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory discovered a new bacterium on the filters of the International Space Station and named it Solibacillus kalamii to honour Kalam.

[155] In February 2018, scientists from the Botanical Survey of India named a newly found plant species as Drypetes kalamii, in his honour.

[182] The third episode of Mega Icons (2018–2020), a documentary television series about prominent personalities of India aired on National Geographic was based on Kalam's life.

[184] In Rocket Boys, a Hindi biographical streaming television series on SonyLIV, the character of Kalam was played by Arjun Radhakrishnan.