Rama Khandwala

Rama Satyendra Khandwala ( Mehta, 3 December 1926 – 28 October 2021) was India's oldest tour guide and was the oldest living member of the Rani of Jhansi Regiment, formed by Subhas Chandra Bose during India's freedom movement.

Early life Khandwala was born on 3 December 1926 to an affluent family in Rangoon, Burma (now Yangon, Myanmar) as the fifth of seven siblings. Her grandfather was a doctor and a lawyer. Her mother, Lilavati Chhaganlal Mehta, was the recruiting officer at the Rani of Jhansi Regiment and a part of the Indian Independence League. At the age of 17, Khandwala and her sister Neelam joined the Regiment as sepoys after hearing Bose's speech in Rangoon. She attended a private school where the popular refrain was "Britain shall always rule the waves".

As a part of the Regiment, she was trained to be a soldier and a nurse. Military training included rifle and bayonet practice, handling machine guns and STEN guns, and defense and attack maneuvers. Medical training included working in general wards and operating rooms.

In 1944, she worked as a nurse in a hospital located in Maymyo (now, Pyin Oo Lwin) and almost died in an air raid. Later, she spotted an advertisement for becoming trained tourist guides and decided to pursue it. She had learned Japanese during their occupation of Burma between 1942 and 1945. She worked as a translator for documentaries created by Japanese television channels, and corporates.

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.

Personal life Khandwala married in Bombay in 1949. Her husband died in 1982, and she had one daughter.

Recognition In 2017, President Ram Nath Kovind felicitated Khandwala with the Best Tourist Guide Award at the National Tourism Awards. On India's 72nd Independence Day, Khandwala inaugurated and was the chief guest at the Indian Film Festival organised by the Films Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.