Watch: 74YO Maniamma Who Drives Everything From Sports Car To Crane

Radhamani, better known as Maniamma, is a spirited woman who defies gender and age barriers to pursue her passion for driving. Once afraid of being behind the steering wheel, the Kerala native continuously worked on perfecting her skills and soon became confident enough to even drive a bus. It was her persistence and her husband's unwavering support that led her to achieve this. 

Maniamma is the founder of the first heavy vehicle driving school in Kerala, which was founded in 1988. At age 74, she has licenses for over 12 vehicles, showcasing her unending love for automotives. Once told women cannot drive, she has proven critics wrong and become a symbol of empowerment.

Hear The 'Driver Amma' Maniamma's Story

“I was born in a middle-class family, in a remote village in Kerala. My father was into the business of coir and coconuts. I got married a month after I appeared for my class 10th exams. My husband was always encouraging. A few years into marriage, we bought a car at home to provide a taxi service. In 1981 after my husband’s persistent effort, I decided to learn driving. Initially, I was scared of hitting someone. But soon with his support I got better at it with practice. In no time, I became so skilled at driving that I could even drive a bus. 

This is how we saw an opportunity and started a driving school issuing heavy vehicle licenses in the state- no one was doing this back then. To teach at the driving school my husband asked me to take a heavy vehicle license back in 1988. That was the start of my journey. 

My parents never knew about any of these, it was my husband who always encouraged me, but in 2004 we lost him to an accident. It was devastating to me. He was my everything but I didn’t give up on his dream, instead, I decided to take it forward and As time went by, we bought more vehicles to instruct at the driving school. I started conquering those licenses one by one and now I have 12 licenses - the last one being the driving license for hazardous vehicles which I took recently.

Today I am the owner of the first heavy vehicle driving school in Kerala. I began obtaining equipment licenses in 2014, including those for a road roller, tractor, crane, and forklift. One day my grandson walked up to me and said, ‘Amma, you could be the only lady in Kerala to have so many licenses. So he contacted the Indian Book of Records team to acknowledge me. I am now the oldest lady with so many licenses and my grandson is the youngest to have these many licenses.

Now my grandson and my whole family including my daughter-in-law are helping me in taking it ahead. 
There is a general feeling that women are not good drivers. I feel this is because women have more fear in their minds and that affects their confidence. But we should change the thought process -don’t leave it to fate. You should decide your own future.”