In most places in India, only men are tasked with prime responsibilities to run the family as they were considered as the sole breadwinners and you don’t often see many women going to offices as they are forced to sit at home and do household chores. On the contrary, men go to offices, stress a lot and work without seeing clock needles to earn wages either daily, weekly or on a monthly basis.
Women have very limited opportunities to study and were always inferior to men. They never really had the liberty to do what men were doing and hence they became homemakers. However, in the male-dominated society, some women are braving against all odds to become successful in life.
Ever since the inception of Motorsports, it was best suited only for men however Mumbai-based female drag racer Samantha D’souza broke gender stereotypes as she became India’s Fastest Female Drag Racer with an astonishing time of 13 seconds flat in a quarter-mile.
Yes, you read it right! Woman biker is bossing the competition and also drifted her way to win several awards which she really deserved. She has been holding the podium position with the boys and is also the 3rd fastest among the men in the KTM 390 class in India.
For the unversed, Motorcycle drag racing involves two contestants lining up at a dragstrip with a signalled starting line. The rider to reach the finish line first is declared the winner.
Motorcycle drag racing might not have a significant fan-following in India but people like Samantha D’souza has set a great example for other women to follow suit. The highlight of her is that she is only Indian Female to ride any short stripped drag bikes like the Malaysia bikes which are being used for drag racing.
Let’s take a look at Samantha D’souza’s glorious achievements so far.
Roaring Champions – India’s Night Drag event (Vasai, Mumbai) – 2015, Finished 9th among 16 men in the 225cc category.
The Valley Run (Aamby valley, Pune) – 2016, Finished 19th in the 135cc 2 stroke among 47 male participants.
The Valley Run (Aamby valley, Pune) – 2016, Finished 15th in the 225cc 4 stroke among 31 male participants.
The Valley Run (Aamby valley, Pune) – 2017, Finished 21st in the 225cc 4 stroke among 39 male participants
The Valley Run (Aamby valley, Pune) – 2017, Finished 16th in the 390cc 4 stroke among 33 male participants
India Speed Week (Jakkur, Bangalore) – 2017, Finished 10th in the 225cc 4 stroke among 22 male participants
India Speed Week (Jakkur, Bangalore) – 2017, Awarded as the Fastest Lady Rider of the Event
India Speed Week (Jakkur, Bangalore) – 2017, Awarded with the Female with Fastest Time of the Event
India Speed Week (Jakkur, Bangalore) – 2017, Finished 2nd in the 390cc 4 stroke among 42 male participants
The Valley Run (Aamby valley, Pune) – 2018, Finished 16th in the 390cc 4 stroke among 33 male participants
The Valley Run (Aamby valley, Pune) – 2019, Finished 3rd in the 390cc 4 stroke among 33 male participants
The Valley Run (Aamby valley, Pune) – 2019, Awarded as the Fastest Lady Rider of the Event
The Valley Run (Aamby valley, Pune) – 2019, Awarded with the Female with Fastest Time of the Event