This is what it takes to be a woman and join the army

She managed to see the humour in uniform, even when she was wearing one. Sajita Nair, former armywoman, pens a part-fiction-part-fact novel, She's A Jolly Good Fellow, based on her five years in the Indian army

Sajita Nair

Two young women take on the Indian army. That's the theme of She's A Jolly Good Fellow, and that's also what Sajita Nair felt in 1994. It was when she, fresh from defence training, joined the men in olive. "Ours was the first batch of women to make it into the army then," says the 39 year-old based in Vishakapatnam. It was both, an awe-inspiring and hilarious time.

Teething problems
While Nair doesn't call it sexist, she does agree that the army had several teething problems, since they probably didn't know how to deal with women in their midst. "I remember the first time we went to the unit for training, we had to wear PT-type clothes: shorts. That was really awkward for us girls," she says with a laugh. Today, the women officers wear trousers. "A lot has changed now and while I still feel it is difficult being a woman in the army, it's much better than it used to be," she adds.

Tough choices
The 39 year-old remembers nursing dreams of fighting for the country since she was a child, thanks to her armed forces background. "I was in the Short Service Commission for five years, after which I quit," she says. Nair had the option of increasing her tenure by another five years, at the end of which she could have done the same, again. Instead, she weighed the options between her career and family, and the latter won. Nair is married to a navy officer. "If my husband were in the army too, I might have stayed on. Since we were in different forces, our transfers used to clash."

Over the five years she spent in the army, Nair always saw the funny side to any situation, and toyed with the idea of putting it together as a book. But she was very clear about it being a fictional novel inspired by her experiences, rather than an autobiography. "I wanted to create a novel in which the protagonist would have to go through hurdles, conflicts, the works," she says, smiling.u00a0

Like reality, like fiction
Today, Nair is a happy mother and debutante author while the protagonists of She's A Jolly Good Fellow, Deepa and Anjali, are still grappling with their lives. "I'm working on the sequel, which takes the story forward after they've made their choices," she reveals.u00a0
What does she miss most about the army? "My uniform!"u00a0

She's A Jolly Good Fellow is published by Hachette and releases this month