Saraswathy Rajamani at the Secretariat in Chennai on June 20, 2005.
| Photo Credit: V. Ganesan
A couple of years ago, if you had entered Peter’s Colony in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, you would have encountered a remarkable woman with many stories to tell and reminisce about — stories of bravery, history, and the independence struggle India went through. This is the story of Saraswathi Rajamani — India’s youngest female spy, who got recruited in her teens!
It was approximately the 1940s when a young Rajamani, born to an affluent family in Myanmar, heard about donations being opened to support the Indian National Army. Already in awe of Subhash Chandra Bose’s fiery speeches and avid patriotism, the young girl instantly gave up all her jewellery for the same. The same caught the eyes of Jawaharlal Nehru and Bose, who assumed it was a mistake due to the large amount of wealth that was donated. Upon investigating, they stumbled upon a young, passionate, yet brave young woman who stood her ground when asked to take back her donations.
The INA journey
It was not much later that she got recruited by Bose into the INA as one of the first female and youngest spies India had at that time. Disguised as a young boy named ‘Mani’, Rajamani pursued various dangerous missions and gathered intelligence from British camps. A popular anecdote known about her was how she had rescued her fellow colleague from the British camp by disguising herself as a dancer and hiding in a tree.
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Sarojini Naidu, Subhas Chandra Bose and Bulusu Sambamurthi at the Congress working committee meeting in Vithalnagar in February 1938.
| Photo Credit:
HINDU PHOTO ARCHIVES
She, along with her colleagues, dressed in male attire and did espionage on British officers and military camps. During her work, one day, one of her colleagues, Durgamall Gorkha, was caught by the British while praying. On this, Neera Arya (popularly known as the first female INA spy) and Rajamani dressed up as dancers and made the British officers and soldiers in the prison unconscious by feeding them intoxicants. They then freed Durgamall Gorkha from prison. During this time, a soldier regained consciousness and shot at them. The bullet fired by him hit Saraswati Rajamani’s leg, which gave her a limp. They saved their lives by hiding in a tree in the forest for three days. Thereafter, Saraswati Rajamani was appointed lieutenant, while Neera Arya was appointed captain in the Rani Jhansi Regiment of Azad Hind Fauj.
Fading names
These stories of bravery, however, faded with time. Post-independence, these eminent personalities soon found themselves living in various corners of India, leading dilapidated lifestyles, with some receiving government support while others refused or were not recognised as time passed by. While talking about freedom fighters, we tend to move towards eminent male figures, and women who fought against not just the British but also the patriarchal system they brought across the seas seem to be slowly disappearing from our books and minds.
A similar fate awaited Rajamani as well; with time, she was forgotten and was soon living purely on the freedom fighter’s pension in a corner of Chennai in Tamil Nadu. It was much later that the Tamil Nadu government recognised and allotted her better accommodation facilities in the city, where she lived until she passed away in 2018 at the age of 91.
In today’s world, despite having the world at our fingertips, we often fail to acknowledge history and the figures who have played a huge role in creating a better society for us to live in. Saraswathi Rajamani’s story serves as a reminder of many names that were forgotten over time and failed to be recognised for their bravery.
niranjana.ps@thehindu.co.in
Published – June 17, 2025 03:29 pm IST
