It was 1942, and the smell of freedom was in the air. From Girgaum Chowpatty to August Kranti Maidan, Bombay then was a hotbed for meetings, demonstrations and rallies to mobilise the masses against the British. In August, under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) launched the Quit India Movement, issuing the clarion call for “do or die”. With the dream of independence in her eyes, Usha Mehta, a 22-year-old student, along with her colleagues, set up an underground radio station. Their aim: keep the public informed about the freedom movement and guide Indians on the path to independence.

From Walkeshwar to Mulund, the Congress Radio shifted bases frequently, relaying the news of protests, crackdowns, speeches and appeals. “This is the Congress Radio calling on 42.34 metres from somewhere in India” — their voice boomed on a ghost transmitter, turning them into the voice of the movement, till their arrest in November that year. Now, this untold story will unfold in Gandhian scholar Usha Thakkar’s upcoming book, Congress Radio: Usha Mehta and the Underground Radio Station of 1942 (Penguin Viking). Ahead of its launch, Thakkar, president, Mani Bhavan Gandhi Sangrahalaya, opens up about her guru Ushaben — as Mehta was fondly known — and how this inspiring story is a lesson in dreaming big.