India’s ‘missile man’ and beloved ex-president APJ Abdul Kalam no more 8 Photos . Updated: 28 Jul 2015, 01:02 PM IST Livemint APJ Abdul Kalam, the scientist, the politician, the philosopher and above all the visionary who pushed ahead a nuclear India, passed away at the age of 83 on Monday. 1/8Son of a humble boatman, Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen A. P. J. Abdul Kalam was born on 15 October 1931 in Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu. Known as the ‘People’s President’, Kalam passed away on Monday while delivering a lecture at IIM Shillong due to a cardiac arrest. 2/8A rare glimpse of Kalam playing his favourite veena. Pic courtesy Facebook page of Billionbeats 3/8President Abdul Kalam all set in a pilot’s uniform for his flight in the fighter plane Sukhoi with the pilot Sq/Ld. Ajay Rathod (to his left) at Indian Air Force station at Pune. HT 4/8With his colleagues at ISRO: (From left) Standing: Ayyappan Nair, and HSR Iyenger. Sitting: D.R. Dhanaseelan, S. Krishnaswamy, Kalam himself and V.G. Uppin. Pic courtesy Facebook page of Billionbeats 5/8In 1960, Dr Kalam with Vikram Sarabhai during his stint at ISRO. Kalam considered joining ISRO one of his biggest achievement. Pic courtesy @PIB India 6/8Receiving the Padma Bhushan award in 1981 from then president Neelam Sanjiva Reddy. Pic courtesy @IndiaHistorypic 7/8With Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama during the world meet for ‘Peace and Harmony’ to celebrate 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekanand. Hindustan Times 8/8Sharing a light moment with Nelson Mandela at Mandelas office in Johannesburg in 2004. Kalam had hailed anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela as a “mighty spirit” after meeting with South Africa’s most famous president. AFP