Hundreds of thousands of lives have been touched by Gurkha soldiering. Many toasts have been drunk to and books written about the Johnny Gurkhas, but reference to their womenfolk has been scant.v
Born and raised in Taplejung in Nepal's far-east hill country, Sancha Maya Limbu was 16 years Old when she married Jit Man Limbu in 1948. Two weeks after their wedding, the 17-year-old groom went off to enlist in the British Gurkhas.
The community approved of the match. Sanchaya Maya had "done good" for herself and enhanced the family's status by marrying a potential lahuray. The new bride was the subject of teasing among her envious girlfriends: Would Jit Man return without a leg or an eye? Would he return at all?
Even in Taplejung District, where going into "bharli" (recruitment) has long been a tradition, Sancha Maya's family had unusually strong ties with the Gurkhas. Her father had seen action in the First World War and had had some close brushes with death. While one of her three brothers stayed at home to farm, one was killed in action in Burma fighting the Japanese only a few years previously. The other brother had gone down to India to be recruited but had never been heard from again. And now Sancha Maya's youthful husband was intent on following the same path. Of course, no one questioned Jit Man' s decision, least of all Sancha Maya.