Rehana Tyabjee was born in an affluent and well-educated family at Baroda on January 26, 1900. It was from her father, Abbas Tyabjee, an eminent judge, that she took her first lessons of patriotism.
Later, she became an ardent follower of Gandhi and his principles. She adopted the lifestyle of Sabarmati Ashram and worked selflessly, both at the political level for gaining freedom and at the social level for establishing a Utopian order. Rehana was actively involved in several agitations against the British rule, especially against those policies of the British which aimed at dividing Indians on communal lines.
She played an important role in non-cooperation and boycott movements, inspiring the masses to adopt ‘swadeshi’ as the principle of their lives. She also rose to presidentship of the Youth League of Congress. In 1942, she was arrested for participating in the Quit India Movement, and was sentenced to one year’s imprisonment.
Rehana held a special interest in spiritualism, which helped her cross barriers of caste, class, religion etc. Though she was a Muslim, she was open to viewpoints from different religions. Gandhi was particularly impressed by this virtue of Rehana’s.
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She was quite adept at singing Hindu devotional songs and has the honour of being the first Muslim woman to sing Vandemataram at any Congress session. Rehana also supported Gandhi in his efforts to eradicate untouchability.
She pleaded for the cause of women and commended the Rai Saheb Harbilas Sharda Act, which favoured the prohibition of child marriage. Even after independence, Rehana continued with her social work but kept away from active politics. She died on May 16, 1975.