Kalyani Sen

3 April 1945 - 3 July 1945

Kalyani Sen was born in 1917 to artist S. N. Gupta and Mrs Gupta. She studied at Kinnaird College, Government College, and Punjab University, all in Lahore. Additionally, she was involved in art exhibitions, theatre and inter-university debate, achieving significant recognition in all three areas.

Sen went on to become chief commander of the Women’s Auxiliary Corps (WAC) in India. Sen joined the WAC in 1943, and later the Women’s Royal Indian Naval Service (WRINS). In April 1945, she became the first Indian servicewoman to visit the United Kingdom, sent to make a comparative study of the training of the Women’s Royal (English) Naval Service (WRNS) and the Women’s Royal India Naval Service (WRINS). She returned to India that July.

Her involvement in the WRINS was heralded by major Indian newspapers and she became a symbol of the ‘new Indian woman’, a model that appeared among educated women from higher castes. This idea was interwoven with women’s emancipation and, more broadly, the Indian independence movement. While in Britain, she made broadcasts with the BBC in English and Bengali, and was vocal about prejudices against women in India, especially in professional environments.

Sen married Lionel Protip Sen in 1939, who later became a Lieutenant-General of the British Indian Army. They had two daughters, Radha and Mala. Mala Sen was a notable human rights activist and writer, known for her civil rights, women’s rights and race relations activism. Sen was divorced in 1953, and later married former brigadier Tutu Bhagat, whom she lived with in Mumbai.