Rama Satyendra Khandwala was born on 3 December 1926 and died on 28 October 2021 at the age of 95, she was India’s most prominent tour guide and the oldest living member of the Rani of Jhansi Regiment, formed by Subhas Chandra Bose during India’s independence movement.
Joining as a sepoy, Khandwala quickly rose to the rank of Second Lieutenant in the regiment. She led 30 Ranis for two years in Rangoon and later shared her experience with Conde Nast Traveller, “My years in the INA were the most precious ones. The training was tough. I was promoted to be a Second Lieutenant and led 30 Ranis. That training still keeps me going. They aren’t going to make any freedom fighter-tour guides anymore, are they?”
She was trained to be both a warrior and a medic, with military training in weapons and combat, and medical training in general wards and operating rooms.
In 1944, she worked as a nurse in Maymyo during an air raid. Her family was under house arrest for six months after World War II. They moved to Bombay in 1946. She later became a tourist guide, working as a translator for Japanese TV channels, and having the opportunity to meet the Dalai Lama and guide the King of Bhutan to Elephanta’s Buddhist caves.
Khandwala served as a tour guide for over 50 years, remaining active into her later years, and was particularly popular with Japanese tourists visiting India. In 2019, she became a TEDx speaker.
In 2017, President Ram Nath Kovind honored Khandwala with the Best Tourist Guide Award at the National Tourism Awards.