Female Nepali double-decker driver in Dubai has charted her own path through life
Shanti Bhandari
Growing up in Okhaldhunga, my sisters never went to school. I got a chance to take functional literacy classes and learned to read and write. This made me realise the importance of education, so I asked my father to send me to school. He agreed.
I had to create this situation for myself. I was fortunate to get my father’s approval despite his initial reluctance because the trend back then was to marry off daughters after they reached 14 or 15. That was all he had known.
Fortunately, my father did not insist on me marrying young. It helped that my brothers in Kathmandu were supportive.
What was it about marrying young that did not appeal to me? I am not sure. But the thought of it used to make me anxious because conversations with my aunts back then made it seem like they had to give up on everything once they got married. There is no freedom to do what one wants in life.
For example, even when there were free all-women adult literacy classes in our village that many of my aunts were keen to join, their families did not approve. Some accepted life the way it was (“यस्तै त हो नि”). Others were sad about having to kill their ambitions.
Marrying young felt too restrictive for me, I just was not ready for it. Instead, I came to Kathmandu after Grade 8 to join two of my brothers.
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Between working as a cook at an office and attending school, where I often had to miss my last class to make it to work on time, I somehow managed to pass my SLC.
I then did odd jobs like work as a receptionist and later as a cashier at a Chinese restaurant. I also invested with my brother on Momo Palace, a restaurant that unfortunately did not succeed because there was not enough money to buy a refrigerator, and there were long power cuts in those days.
After finally getting married and having a child in 2010, I was a stay-at-home mom for a bit. After the 2015 earthquake, I left for the UAE leaving my son behind with my family.
I first worked at a beauty parlour, waxing, straightening hair, threading. Many of my clients were Filipinas with whom I used to have engaging conversations. I asked for advice about career prospects, and they were generous with suggestions.
With my mother in Dubai in 2017, when I worked in a beauty parlour, but passion was always to learn to drive.
I was always fascinated with driving. Back in Nepal, I used to be in awe of women who drove six-wheelers. I used to wait for auto rickshaws driven by women, and had a deep sense of appreciation for what they did because they were breaking barriers.
My customers from the Philippines said they drove company cars or were chauffeurs for Emirati families. I was really interested, and used to call them up in the evenings to seek more advice.
The work at the parlour was a necessity, I knew my interests were elsewhere. But the idea of driving on the busy streets was scary at first. But my customers assured me that it was difficult at first, but once you understood the rules, how the system worked, it was safe and driving was very doable.
Initially, I faced challenges obtaining my driving license because back then the work visa category determined eligibility.
For example, only those in the transport sector, in managerial positions and in security qualified for a license.
It was disappointing, but I sought a job at a transportation company and worked as a school bus driver’s companion to manage children on their way to school and back, what we call a खलासी in Nepal.
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I enjoyed the job as the children were friendly, and reminded me of my son of similar age back home.
I worked there for a couple of years, even though the pay was 300 Dirhams less than my wages in the salon. But I was so committed to a driving job that I just wanted to get a toehold to obtain a UAE-license.
I was the only woman in driving class, the others would be curious about where I was from and why I wanted to drive. I took the lessons seriously, and worked hard to study traffic rules. Such was my determination to obtain a license.
I passed both theoretical and practical tests at one go, and bought a cheap car. My dream had been to drive my mother around, and in 2017, my mother and son came to Dubai, their first trip abroad.
I was emotional back then because my father had died unexpectedly just a month after I left for the Emirates. He had asked me to buy him a touch phone, but he died before I even made my first pay check with which I planned to buy it for him.
He would have loved to see me driving around Dubai. I took my mother around and also bought her a phone. What I could not do for my father, I did for her. My son was a bit distant at first, as we had been separated for two years. But by the time they were headed back to Nepal, he could not stop crying and clung on to me.
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I first started by driving a taxi. There were a few women driving taxis, including two Nepalis. Initially, it was difficult to find my way around Abu Dhabi. If I missed one turn, it could delay customers, and some who were regular on that route would create a fuss.
I drove a taxi around Abu Dhabi for five years, but always wanted to do more.
I wanted to avoid them complaining to my employer, so I would apologise and ask them to just pay their regular fare. Some agreed, others understood that I was a beginner and paid the full fare.
I steadily got to know my way around, and drove taxis for five years. I used to read the local news quite a bit to stay informed about traffic law updates.
One day, I read that there were women from the Philippines and African countries who were driving buses. I decided to get a bus license.
When I first went to apply for it, they questioned me about why I wanted to drive a bus. I told them confidently that I could drive a bus, which was met with much surprise and amusement.
I took the classes, the solo female student yet again. As the only woman in a group of 35 during the road test, I used to avoid the ‘ladies first’ offers because I wanted to see how others before me did so I could observe them.
I was already a nervous driver, and I got even more nervous when they offered to let me go first. Eventually, I was one of the only seven who passed in the group of 35 drivers.
Finding a job as a woman bus driver was somewhat tougher than getting the license. Abu Dhabi did not allow it due to the absence of policies for female bus drivers, so I had to look for a job in Dubai.
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I was thrilled when I was finally hired by a company that invested in my training as I taught myself the route. With my trainer’s help, I used to draw a map of my route with the relevant stops. After the workday, I drove through the route in my car to make sure I was familiar with it.
Since then, I have been driving a double-decker bus and taking tourists to old and modern Dubai.
It is important to stay curious and keep pushing ourselves. I have invested a lot of money in getting a bus license, classes and other skills training, and I see it as an investment for my future.
I don’t know what awaits me. I am 41 now, but want to keep trying new things, and refuse to let my age determine my drive. If I did, I would have stuck to my parlour job instead of taking risks and a pay cut.
Many people choose to play it safe in life, but I have always believed in stepping outside my comfort zone and challenging what is considered appropriate work for women.
That is what I tell Nepali youth who are considering going abroad for work: do not migrate empty-handed without any skills. Paper certificates do not hold much value if they do not translate into practical abilities.
I enjoy my job driving the Big Bus. Earnings aside, it is rewarding to be appreciated by tourists who hop on. They want to take pictures, and ask me about myself. At traffic stops, people crossing the road sometimes wave at me.
Such appreciation is like an extra bonus pay, and it motivates me even more. I feel proud to know that I am the first woman double decker bus driver in the tourism sector here.
Nepalis in Dubai also shower me with a lot of affection. They tell me they have seen me on the news or on social media, and want to take selfies with me, smiling widely.
My son on the top deck of my Big Bus when he visited Dubai recently.
My son tells me how his teachers and friends back home asked about me after seeing video interviews about my journey. It was a proud moment for me recently to drive my son around Dubai on the double decker.
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Diaspora Diaries is a Nepali Times collaboration with Migration Lab providing a platform to share experiences of living, working, studying abroad.
INPS Japan/ Nepali Times