Women in the driver’s seat
When India’s maiden all-woman rally team is flagged off on its first Championship outing, it’ll be a proud moment for the country’s first woman motorsport team owner
My mother and I endured several challenges to become what we eventually did. Our brand is all about women empowerment, as that is a personal journey. So, we wanted to empower women from various walks of life. We believe supporting a women’s team will take our vision to the next level — Vasundhara
Kasaraneni
After having established herself as an entrepreneur for over two decades, Vasundhara Kasaraneni, the first woman from South Asia to set up a jewellery business, recently took the plunge into sports.
In a first for Indian motorsports, a woman will be promoting an all-women rally team in the Champions Yacht Club FMSCI Indian National Championship 2020.
Team Vasundhara comprises women rallyists Dr Bani Yadav of Gurugram and Pragathi Gowda of Bengaluru. They will be driving a Volkswagen Polo 1.6 and will be competing in the Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) 3 classification. The competition begins in Arunachal on December 15 and will subsequently move down South with three rounds — in Coimbatore, Hampi and the season-finale in Bengaluru.
So, what prompted someone who is heavily into the art and jewellery business to venture into unknown terrain, we ask.
Vasundhara says the idea of promoting women in motorsports is in line with her company’s ethos of women empowerment. “My mother and I endured several challenges to become what we eventually did. Our brand is all about women empowerment, as that is a personal journey. So, we wanted to empower women from various walks of life. We believe supporting a women’s team will take our vision to the next level,” she explains, adding that it was a development that means a lot to all of those involved.
Apparently, it was Vamsy Merla, promoter of INRC, who pitched the idea of supporting an allwomen’s rally team to Vasundhara’s son Ashish. “Ashish in turn bounced the idea to me, and I was immediately excited. My son is a sports buff and he follows all sports. The specific opportunity available was in motorsport; it appealed to us because the idea of promoting women was in sync with our company’s vision. We want to provide more opportunities to women and believe in their empowerment because of our brand’s personal journey too,” she says.
Vasundhara acknowledges that it is tough for women to excel in sports like racing where opportunities are very limited. “Even in Formula 1, there are no women, so I believe a head start at the ground level like this will bring more women into motorsports in the future.”
Heaping praise on the two women rallyists, she says “Bani is among the fastest and topmost rally drivers in India, and Pragathi is a promising talent. So we were excited to support such talent.
More so, because such a gesture is happening for the first time in Indian motorsports.”
Vasundhara may be one of the most successful businesswomen, but the road she travelled hasn’t been smooth. “I faced a lot of barriers in transforming my dream into reality,” she says, looking back. “Many said, ‘what can this woman do’? My competitors even badmouthed me. saying ‘don’t go to her’.” But the unfair criticism only made Vasundhara more determined to excel and prove her detractors wrong.
She did so, and now enjoys being an entrepreneur. “Initially, I used to wonder how women can work, considering the fact that we also run our homes, which is itself a big responsibility. So balancing work and life was extremely challenging. Back then, I used to think that women should not aspire to work unless it was a must,” she reveals.
Talking about the measures she took to deal with both domestic and professional commitments, Vasundhara, who hails from Vijayawada, says she consciously set up her office near her house for logistic reasons.
“I always ensured that I gave enough time to our children,” she shares. “Now Ashish heads the operations of my company and Ayushi looks after the Marketing side. Also acknowledging the contribution of her businessman-husband Anil Kasaraneni to her success. “His constant support encouraged me to pursue my dream,” she says, signing off.