MARCHING TO A NEW TUNE

Captain Sandhya Mahla, who led the first all-women contingent at the 75th Republic Day parade, believes that leadership is not defined by gender

- POOJA BIRAIA JAISWAL

The night before the 75th Republic Day, Captain Sandhya Mahla slept for barely two hours. She had spent the day getting her uniform ready, ensuring that not a thread was out of place, that her shoes fit perfectly and the pagdi (turban) sat well. Around 2am, she, and the 148-strong women contingent, lined up outside the barracks to board the bus for Kartavya Path. That morning, the temperature in Delhi had dropped to four degrees and a thick blanket of fog had reduced the visibility considerably. And yet, by 4am, after a steaming cup of tea and some light snacks, the contingent had reached Vijay Chowk. For the next four hours, until the parade began, they practised at least 20 times to ensure flawless synchronisation, leaving no room for error.

Everyone was aware that this was to be a momentous day in the history of the defence services. For the first time, women soldiers from all the three services-the Army, the Navy and the Air Force-had come together to march as one contingent. Leading them was Mahla, 26, who had fervently prayed that morning for everything to go well.

The last time she had participated in the Republic Day parade was as an 18-year-old member of the National Cadet Corps (NCC) in 2017, and before that as a 12-year-old NCC cadet in 2011.

It was a proud moment to have come this far, she says, from being a participant to the leader of the contingent in such a short time (she got commissioned in November 2021). "I have always believed in being true to myself and my work, and in carrying out my duties with the utmost dedication," she says.