CHENNAI: Even as India is inching closer towards its human space mission, Russian consul general Sergey Kotov on Tuesday indicated Russia's interest to conduct joint space missions including a manned flight to Mars.The consul general addressed school students at the National Science Day celebrations when he said that the topic about a joint IndoRussian space mission came up during a discussion with one of the top scientists in space research, who also headed Isro earlier.“Though history of space is not bigger than history of mankind, it is still a great step forward. And the then Soviet Union and Russia has taken this step forward. In future, we will have such steps together with India,“ he said.The event was jointly organised by Russian Centre of Science and Culture and Space Kidz India, an organization that promotes science, technology and arts among students. Lauding India's achievements in space research, Kotov urged students to work to be a part of the country's future endeavours.While mentioning a possibility of a joint space exploration, the consul general, raised a query about Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian astronaut, on how he managed in space without spicy Indian food.“The food for astronauts were made in Russia. We do not have curry . I would like to know how he survived without curry . I would be pleased if someone asked him,“ he said.Students also had a chance to interact with former cosmonaut Salizhan Sharipov at the event. He has spent 200 days in space in two separate mission and has done two spacewalks for more than 10 hours.While encouraging students to take up space research, the cosmonaut emphasised the need for hard work and perseverance.“It took eight years of training for me to become a cosmonaut,“ he said. “It is my dream, training, hard work and luck that made me a cosmonaut.“Sharipov shared his experience on his work at the International Space Station as he explained how it was physically demanding even for a `fit' person like him.“Earlier, only fighter jet pilots were eligible to become cosmonauts. But we had to do special exercises while at the space station to keep ourselves fit in zero gravity environment,“ he said.Having spent more than six months in space, Sharipov told students that his idea of earth, people and friendship has changed over the years.