Woman Bikers in India

Forget the rippling muscles and tattoos, women are whizzing with passion

It’s a man’s world - the term attached when it comes to riding bikes is fading with an increase of women bike riders in the country.Initially there was a phase where ​motorcycles were typically associated with machismo: rippling muscles, coloured tattoos, rough rides and new conquests

​.However it is not only ​restricted to and women are not afraid to whiz into this space. 

In many shows, we normally see boys and girls who ride bikes — there have only been a handful of women who actually rode them, instead of riding pillion. However times are changing.

The trend of women being part of various bike festivals is also increasing. Out of many, India Bike Week, one such festival for bikers, attracts bikers from across the world and has a good participation from the women folk.

 The Bikerni – An all-female riders club and regular at IBW are one such riders group that spearheads women empowerment through the medium of motorcycles. The Bikerni was kickstarted by Urvashi Patole in January 2011. Her aim was to create a platform for women who ride motorcycles and for those who aspire to ride motorcycles as well.

With the help of a few dedicated women, the foundation of The Bikerni was laid in cities all over India.

Sonia Jain, a biker, traveler and marketing professional has been riding since 2009 and now owns Yamaha MT 01, Royal Enfield classic 500 and Yamaha FZ 150. 

Sarika Mehta just concluded riding her Ducati in Europe and Labhdi Shah owns a Harley and Kawasaki 800 and rides a lot.

Sheetal Bidaye, 36, became the first female solo biker to reach the world's highest motorable pass, Marsimik La, and won a place in India's Limca Book Of Records for her feat. 

For them it is an inspiration, overpowering experience, bending the rules and most importantly following their passion – to ride. 

Soaking in the 10 acre festival village in Vagator, Goa India Bike Week, the largest biking festival in India saw more than 12,000 riders and bike enthusiasts ride cross-country to Goato celebrate the spirit and lifestyle of the Indian Biking community.

India is a country where two-wheelers are the vehicle of choice for millions. Motorbikes have always been popular in India and seeing a woman on a motorbike is not uncommon, but they are usually the ones taking a backseat. When you see a woman pull up to work on her Karizma, she is certain to get some strange looks and some men with a narrow mindset are of the opinion that ‘girls should only be riding scooters. However, over the last 3-4 years this philosophy is seeing a gigantic change--more and more women are riding  these machines, and a number of female-only clubs have helped kick-start this trend, and reverse the widely held typecasts.

One of the frequent hurdles faced by female bikers is undue male attention. Watching women displaying riding skills that were once entirely in the male domain are kind of intimidating to the men folk. Female riders tend to get followed and bullied by the men riders and that is quite a turn off.

On the positive side,women today have equal opportunities and freedom to an extent to be able to choose the kind of lifestyle they desire. Motor biking for females is no longer  a  taboo, at least not since it has been declared that female riders are way less often involved in rash driving than men.

One such woman biker Sonia Jain is an avid traveller and marketing professional. “I have always wished to own a bike, even as a child. However ‘buy gold, buy diamonds, buy a car but never a bike’ was the daunting message I got from home, every time I tried to persuade them to buy me a bike”, says Sonia  adding “but that has changed now. I have been riding since 2009, I own so many bikes! A Yamaha MT 01, Royal Enfield classic 500 and Yamaha FZ 150. I like to change my motorcycles from time to time to get acquainted with the other beastly machines out there, so I do not  name them, It becomes difficult to replace your machines once you get too attached to them”.

She further admitted “On the positive side, today  men have started  taking  female riders seriously and share their expertise and technical guidance with them in order to help them better their riding skills. Male and female enthusiasts come together to celebrate this mutual love for biking at major biking events, and one such biking festival is India Bike Week which I have attended since 2013.”

An increase in female biking trend is automatically seeing a number of female-only bike clubs come into existence in India. The Bikerni from Pune – an all-female riders club and regular at India Bike Week is one such riders group that spearheads female empowerment through the medium of motorcycles. They organize events and rides encouraging women who enjoy motorcycling to go on adventures they never thought to go on before. So now it is not just men, but even women who would like to be associated with the mayhem, thrill, freedom and the passion of motorcycling.

In Bangalore, Hop on Gurls is a group for Bullet riders. Women on motorcycles are a small minority in India, even smaller is the number of women who ride motorcycles built by the iconic lifestyle motorcycle brand, Royal Enfield. One motorcycle club based out of Bangalore aims to change all of that HopOnGurls. This motorcycle club however is one with a twist.  doesn’t just encourage women to take to riding motorcycles, but while doing so actively encourages them to try riding the motorcycles made by Royal Enfield. Royal Enfield motorcycles weigh a portly 180 Kilograms and this weight is something that scares most men away from this motorcycle, leave alone women riding them.

While it is another story that the Bullet is remarkably easy to ride with its inherent stability that 19 inch wheels bring to the table, most folks hesitate to ride this motorcycle due to the sheer weight involved. HopOnGurls offer to teach women how to ride a motorcycle, to be specific a Royal Enfield motorcycle.

Aparna Bandodkar admits she gets some strange looks as she pulls up to work.

Travelling to the office on a Royal Enfield Standard 350 motorbike isn't, after all, the regular mode of transport for a dentist.She founded the Regals , a club for female Royal Enfield riders in Mumbai

For some women, biking is more than just a leisure activity, for instance Sheetal Bidaye, 36, became the first female solo biker to reach the world's highest motorable pass, Marsimik La, and won a place in India's Limca Book Of Records for her feat.  Some are taking to biking professionally too. The passion to own a set of heavyweight wheels, and a racer father were inspiration enough for Chennai-based Alisha Abdullah. As India's only female superbike racer, she now owns a Honda CBR600 and Honda Repsol. Girls do not ride bikes anymore to only commute; there are more of them doing off-roading & stunts too.

Although there is no official data to substantiate the growing number of female taking to the road on motorcycles, industry experts estimate the number of bikes bought by females in India is increasing at a rate of 40-50 per cent  every year. Bike-makers like Hero, DSK, Ducati, Yamaha are witnessing an uptick in sales , with the under- 35 age group driving the trend.

 Marketers and industry experts say the Indian retail landscape is  undergoing  radical transformation, as more females take up jobs and see a surge in the average household income.  Another factor driving the change is the increased availability of different types  and   sizes of motorbikes.  Motorbikes of different weight, height and size can make them harder to ride for the fairer sex, but manufacturers are introducing lighter bikes with lower height in the Indian market to tap into a growing interest from  women.  For example the Italian firm Ducati recently launched the Monster 795 bike in India, which weighs far less and is lower to the ground.

India is likely to see a  big surge of women bikers in a country, which is the largest maker of motorcycles in the world and one of the largest manufacturers of two wheelers.  But this change and the existence of vast numbers of female bikers on the road will require a lot of support from manufacturers and a change in attitude of the society alike. More manufacturers need to  to set up maintenance workshop facilities were these bikers can learn the mechanics of motorcycles. And as Sonia mentioned while sharing her experience, biking festivals like India Bike Week - the largest festival for bikes and bikers - is a large boulevard were these female riders participate, exchange stories and share their incredible experiences that celebrate the spirit and lifestyle of female bikers in India

The festival this year saw the event graced by ace cricketer and bike enthusiast Yuvraj Singh, known for his enthusiasm for automobiles and is associated with Autologue Design - a car and motorcycle customization Company launching its new custom bike designs at IBW.Yuvraj as a first time biker rode all the way from Delhi to Chandigarh on his friends borrowed bike and now with his passion growing further he has expressed his interest to be a part of India Bike Week in 2016 maybe on his own ride.

Auto consultant Megha Choksey  shared aa few safety tips for female bikers:

•           Be Alert and attentive to both the road and its other users.    

•           Follow Road Rules.

•           Always have your safety gear like helmet, knee guard on while riding.

•           Always be seen and heard.  Share your detailed itinerary with your family and friends, ca

            Carry  extra cell phone and use GPS while riding.

•           Always carry the must have weapons all times – Pepper spray and safety knife and lastly

•           Be Confident.