Shana's in the fast lane

Entrepreneur, interior designer, professional racer, pilot, and track driving instructor — Shana Parameshwar tells Pooja Prabbhan Srijith that she loves to break stereotypes

Shana Parameshwar

As a wide-eyed enthusiast who’d always cherish the time spent watching rallies on the sidelines, it didn’t take long for Bengaluru girl and global racer Shana Parameshwar to discover her true calling. From having clinched first place in the Mercedes winter challenge in Sweden last year to working on building India’s longest racetrack, the Bengaluru girl lets us in on the inside track.

Going by your past record, you seem to have broken gender stereotypes. Take us through your journey. What inspired you to venture out into the domain of car racing, and track driving?

You know times have progressed when women just don’t compete with women but level the playing field racing side by side with men. My inspiration was the hunt for speed and sheer excitement of being able to control something really powerful. Watching rallies from when I was a child and seeing the skill level someone needed to master one of these tools was just something I had to experience myself. I have always been inclined to cars and started driving cars from when I was 4 years old. About breaking gender stereotypes, I believe sometimes men enjoy being beaten by a girl and sometimes they don’t take it too well but it’s nice to see some men take it in the right way. Racing is not a physical contact sport where muscle strength or being a boy or girl matters. Racing is more like chess where it’s more about skill and technique rather than physical muscle power.

How did the Mercedes winter challenge come by?

The Mercedes winter challenge in Sweden last year was an AMG event, and I’d won the award for being the fastest for racing on snow. There were two other women part of the AMG event in Sweden, and that was an inspiration in itself. Racing on ice was a new experience that had never been done before, and everything felt serendipitous given my lack of experience in terms of the concept. We had a few days of training, which at the end of the week led to the race of champions. The rest as they say is history.

We hear that you’re currently working on your pet project of building India’s longest racetrack which is all set to come up in the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh. Tell us more.

All I can truly say is that we will have our own Las Vegas without the costs but with the same ‘whatever happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas’ punch line. This might make you wonder if we might have a casino coming up too, beating all odds. This is a 5.5 km track that will be longer than the F1-Spec BIC that aims to host international racing championships like F2 and the venue will also host off-road track, trackside accommodation, and lots more. It’s a two-hour drive away from the Bengaluru International Airport.

Achievements galore

♦ Fastest lap record set by a lady in a production car with a timing of 2:08.
♦ Volunteered and worked with the Red Cross, New Zealand.
♦ Between 2005 and 2009 she was an integral part of the legendary K1000 rally in India and even participated as their official safety driver.
♦ Drove the first Indian car to participate at the Modball rally in 2017.
♦ She has the distinction of driving the first Indian-registered car to Gibraltar.
♦ Shana won first place in the Mercedes winter challenge held in Sweden last year.