When we hear the word ‘Mechanic’ the picture of a man carrying some equipment comes in our mind. But how many of you have pictured a woman as a mechanic? Yes, meet Shanti Devi the one and only lady mechanic of India. Her husband Raam Bahadur ran a tea shop at Sanjay Gandhi Transport Nagar in Delhi. When this tea shop wasn’t enough for him to run his family, he also started working as a mechanic. But alone, he wasn’t able to do all the work. Then her wife Shanti Devi breaking all the stereotypes learned all the mechanical skills from her husband.
Now and then people always questioned her abilities. But each and every time she proved all of them wrong. She is the first lady mechanic of India and had been working over 20 years at the outskirts of Delhi. Being more than 55 years of age, she works 12 hours per day. She fixes punctures of 10-15 tires on a daily basis. She can lift up to 50 kg of tires easily. Everyone gets shocked watching her repairing tires like a wizard.
In one of her interviews she said:
“I learned all about automobiles and changing tires by watching my husband and other mechanics while they were working. Today, I know that I am a better mechanic than many men and prove it through my work every day. I believe a woman can do any job if she has a passion for it. Men still look at me with surprise and interest as I go about my job.”
She is an inspiration for all of us. In a country where most of the women follow the pattern, she did what she needed to do to survive.