Under the guidance of a driving instructor at a test track in New Delhi, Shweta Singh coaxes a small car grudgingly uphill.

Ms Singh, a 26-year-old human resources associate at a healthcare company, bought a new Chevrolet five years ago. Like many middle-class Indians, she has a driver who shuttles her around the city. However, she is learning to drive herself because then “you can go anywhere”, she says. “It is a mark of independence.”