Swati Sengupta is an author and journalist. Her books include Out of War (Speaking Tiger Books, 2016), Guns on My Red Earth (Rupa, 2013), Half the Field Is Mine (Scholastic, 2014), The Talking Bird (Tulika Books, 2014) and A Tea Garden Party (Pratham Books, 2021). She translated Murder In The City by Supratim Sarkar (Speaking Tiger Books, 2018) from Bengali to English. Swati runs a workshop series on gender for young adults. She studied English at Jadavpur University and lives in Kolkata.
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Jhalkari Bai grew up in Bhojla, many miles away from the city of Jhansi. Far from the grand forts and palaces and illustrious kings and queens of Jhansi, in her village, she was known for her great strength and bravery—fighting off tigers and dacoits all alone. She nurtured a fierce desire to be a soldier, and to do amazing acts of courage.
When Jhansi went to war against the British after the events of 1857, Jhalkari Bai was an important member of Rani Laxmibai’s fighting force. As a leader of the women’s wing of Jhansi’s army, she knew no fear. When the queen had to flee Jhansi, it was Jhalkari Bai who helped her escape with her tremendous fighting skills and a final act of courage.
Today, Jhalkari Bai is present as just a footnote in history. But she lives on in the hearts of her people in Jhansi, Bhojla and beyond. This is her incredible and memorable story of bravery and sacrifice.
