Shanti Rides Shotgun

In getting to know Shanti, I discovered a much more tender and complicated story beneath the surface. Her driving school isn’t just a business; it’s her lifeline. After the loss of her husband, the passenger seat became the place where she could still feel needed, still feel connected. There’s something incredibly moving about the way she pours herself into teaching, how she uses it to channel grief into purpose.

And then there’s the fascinating dynamic of who’s in the car with her: a Guyanese woman from the Bronx teaching the city’s most elite how to parallel park. That tension, between cultures, between classes, is always present, but Shanti handles it with grace and grit. What started as a portrait of a driving instructor quickly became a story about resilience, about holding space for grief, and about the quiet dignity of someone who keeps showing up, day after day, to help other people move forward.