When Courage Drives Change: Women Behind the Wheels at Mahindra

On International Women’s Day, stories of progress are often told through milestones and achievements. Sometimes, however, the most meaningful stories unfold quietly—in places like a vehicle workshop.

At the Mahindra EV service station in Swayambhu, Kathmandu, the morning had just begun. Teams moved in quiet coordination as vehicles rolled in and out of service bays.Then Prashansa drove in.

Small in stature but steady behind the wheel, she maneuvered the Mahindra BE 6 across the service bay and parked it with effortless confidence.In that brief moment, long-held stereotypes about who belongs in an automotive workshop quietly faded. But Prasamsa is not the only one redefining expectations here.

Women Leading the Workshop

In Swayambhu, Kathmandu, Agni Incorporated Pvt. Ltd., the authorised distributor of Mahindra vehicles in Nepal, is operating a service center staffed entirely by women.

The facility was introduced alongside the arrival of Mahindra’s newest electric SUVs in the Nepali market. It currently employs around half a dozen female technicians who manage daily service activities.

From vehicle intake and washing to diagnostics and repair work, the operational responsibilities at the center are handled by women. The team also manages parts inventory and administrative tasks such as accounts.

A Fight That Began Early

For Prashansa, the journey began long before she stepped into a workshop.

She grew up in Sudurpaschim Province in a scheduled caste community where education for girls was often questioned. “What will women do with education when she will be making her husband’s home?” people would ask.

Years later, when she decided to train as a car technician, the doubts resurfaced. Many believed the work demanded physical strength more suited to men. Her response was simple.

The job requires more understanding than muscle. Tools exist to handle the heavy lifting; the real work lies in knowing how to use them.

Choosing to Stay

Attending technical school meant traveling more than 700 kilometers away from home. The classrooms were overwhelmingly male, and the environment was unfamiliar. Many women who started the program eventually left. Some struggled with social pressure. Others found the isolation difficult. Prashansa stayed.

She remembers a friend who began the same training but left after marriage. Her career quietly ended soon after. That experience strengthened her determination to continue her own path.

Today she works confidently at the service center, supported by colleagues—and by a supervisor who encourages her ambitions.

Starting After Marriage

A few bays away, another story is unfolding.

Sujata joined the service center six months ago shortly after her marriage. For many women, marriage becomes a turning point where careers slow down or stop. For her, it became a beginning.

She says the presence of other women across departments made the transition easier. The environment, she explains, has been welcoming and supportive—both at work and at home.

Building a Different Workplace

What stands out at this Mahindra service center is not just the presence of women, but the culture around them. Women work across technical and operational roles alongside male colleagues in a workplace built on cooperation and mutual respect.

Managers encourage growth. Colleagues support one another. It is a reminder that inclusion rarely comes from policy alone. More often, it grows through everyday practices that allow people to belong.

Redefining the Road Ahead

Watching Prashansa guiding electric SUVs across the service bay, her journey becomes clear.

It is a path that began with a fight for education. It continued with a move far from home, years of training in male-dominated classrooms, and the determination to keep going. Her story—and others like it within this service center—reflect how barriers begin to shift when people refuse to accept them as permanent.

On this International Women’s Day, the women working here offer a glimpse of how Nepal’s automotive industry may evolve. Sometimes, progress does not arrive with grand announcements. Sometimes, it moves quietly across a workshop floor—one determined step at a time.