AUGUST 2022

A Route Less Travelled

This month Bike India celebrates its 17th anniversary. In 2004, a new publishing house, by the name of Next Gen Publishing, was founded. It was funded by the Shapoorji Pallonji Group and HDFC. When Next Gen decided to start an automobile magazine, it would have been very easy for them to take the tried and trusted route of launching one that covered both cars and two-wheelers. However, the core team decided to take a big risk by launching two separate magazines: Car India and Bike India. To date, Bike India remains the only dedicated bike magazine in the country.

The team at Bike India would like to thank our readers and manufacturers for their support over the past 17 years and look forward to it in the future as well. The magazine has gone from strength to strength. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the unsung heroes of the Bike India team whom you never get to see or hear about: the marketing team, the office staff, and the design team who are not in the limelight and put in a lot of hard work month on month to bring out the magazine.

Last month I rode the new Triumph 660 Tiger and was pleasantly surprised by the bike. It is a mid-size motorcycle that does everything you want. The compact size of this bike makes it easy to handle when you are not on the move and easy to navigate through city traffic and, at the same time, it has enough performance to do long-distance touring. One wonders whether one really needs a 1,000- or 1,200-cc adventure sport bike to do long-distance touring.

Once again, I would like to thank our readers and manufacturers for their support. Please wear your helmets and be considerate to others on the road and ride with care.