My Nagpur
connection…..
Nagpur is my birthplace...Nagpur for me has always been a
place full of reserved, mannered & considerate people.
It’s a place where vehicles age with their
owners, where you still find a very well maintained Fiat Padmini or a willy. Amongst
it I proudly flaunt my pure Japanese 1985 Maruti 800 as well!
I was 6 when we left that place, since then
we try visit that place once in a year. That place literally gets me into
nostalgia and it feels great that the place has evolved much like any other
city but still a lot
is to be desired….
After all these years, Nagpur is still a laid back city. You
don’t find that sense of competitiveness amongst people that you find in
metropolitans. I guess privatization is
still in initial stages in Nagpur. So the city is saved from outside
population. What you’ll find is lot of government offices with those “Sarkari babu” sitting on their desks! Even
the weather’s amazing! Tee’s and shorts in December!Wow!
One disturbing thing I found was that Helmets were still not
mandate! Almost every guy rides with his shades on & every gal has herself
covered. But Yes! No Helmet! It was a hard thing to digest! I mean when the
machines are the same, why not the rules!
Let me admit that writing this blog was in my mind from the
day I went to Nagpur. The place is not as flamboyant or glamorous as Delhi nor
the people, but hey! You find exceptions everywhere! At least I did!
Trip to Adasa
& Waqi River
Before I go ahead and tell you about the trip, I would like to
introduce a dear friend of mine, Richie Chakre…the amazing part is he was the
first person I know as friend, In other words, He’s the first friend I made in
life during my childhood.Whenever I used to visit Nagpur I tried to get in touch
with him. Before he was in Bombay, but fortunately this time he was present.
Amazing artist and a great bike enthusiast!He was the one who introduced me to the world of biking!
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| Me & Richie! |
Last time when I met him(maybe around 4 years ago), he was
all principled and carrier oriented. So we had a meet what you would call a
sort of a formal meeting & then we bid each other goodbye!
So this time when I called, I was hoping for the same 15
minute Hi hello bye meeting….I was SO
WRONG!!!! The first thing he said that dude let’s have a bike trip to Adasa (a
place near Nagpur)! He also told me about some guy called Siddarth (who owns a
Duke) would be joining us as well.
A phone call was not enough so we decided to meet. He took
me to a Bar called Fiona . There we exchanged our views on the biking culture!
I also told him, rather bragged, about D.B.B.R. & Free Soul Riders! J, On how bikers across
Delhi meet at one place and head somewhere for breakfast or some cause. He was
amazed when he heard about the two line formation and a constant speed of
60km/h! He also told me about a group in Nagpur called Thundergods .But that
group was only meant for Enfield owners. Details about the trip to Adasa was
finalized over there…
The D day!
Adasa is approximately 35 km from Nagpur. Being an atheist by nature, am not much into temple and stuff. However I do believe in natural beauty & it was not the destination but the journey I was exited about!
I had borrowed my brother’s Apache 160 RTR. Must say that
bike really handles quite well. I was the first to arrive the scene. From there
we went to Yogesh & Sid’s place.
Sid’s entry was amazing! He came out quietly. Gently started
his Duke,& let it warm up a bit! And
as soon as he hit the highway, all hell broke loose! I initially thought of him
as show off. But that’s actually how the bike rides. Effortless, fast and
sharp! I thought I would meet him at the end point only, but he was considerate
enough to slow down for us. Richie was on Hero Hunk.
Okey! Now coming back to the trip, Adasa had a Ganesh temple located on a hill top.
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| Meeting point: Haldiram, Wardha Road. |
We stopped at some tea stall midway,there we decided to do Waqi
as well as we had enough time…Rest let the pics tell the story…
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| Kitna deti hai?!..Tank full before taking off! |
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| Let the fun begin!!! |
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| Our first pitstop! |
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| Superb tarmac! Complete pleasure driving on them! |
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| Waqi 360! |
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| DooBo 3! |
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| Deep thoughts in shallow water.. |
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| If there's magic in this planet, it is contained in water... |
If you remember, I had said that Nagpur a place where
vehicles age with their owners, This is what I ment…. read on. I had 2-3 places
in mind where I could get pictures of some unique two wheelers. The only
problem was I only has an hour to cover these places…
There’s a famous place in Nagpur called Burdi, It’s a sort
of what you call a mall road of Nagpur. What used to stores, now have been
given a modern outlook. Sorry could not take any pictures of that place, but
there I found a restored 1964 Java over there, sparkling and well maintained!
It belonged to the owner called Babban. First the Pictures then story…
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| 1964 Java |
Now the shocker!
The
owner of the guy is the one packing popcorn in picture above. I wanted to take a
picture of him sitting on the bike but he had to finish packing those pop-corn
packets! So I rushed to the second place…
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| That is what I call extreme detailing! |
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Now the second place where I wanted to go was a boutique owned
by someone called Mr. Lal Singh. Seven or eight years ago, I had ordered a
cargo from that place. That time I did notice that bike, I mean it really
looked unique, orange chassis with black body and two silencers looked pretty exciting!
It was later on I came to know that the bike was a Yamaha 350.
Mr. Singh, a dress designer by profession, was busy in his
shop when I approached him. I was direct “Sir, I am a bike enthusiast and I
want to take your picture along with your bike.” He raised an eyebrow and said ”Look man, I am
quite busy here you better be quick!”. “Man everyone’s busy nowadays!” I said
to myself and was preparing myself to for the same treatment as Mr.Babban. But,
conversation started building up and his passion for bikes was evident after a
while. He was a proud and oldest owner of Yamaha 350 in Nagpur. He also showed
me marks on his shoes caused due shifting gears and how he had called a
mechanic form Bombay to get his stead repaired! A through gentleman! He went on
and on about his bike. While talking I noticed one more bike, petrol tank and
headlights removed. What’s that? I
asked. He casually said “Man, that’s a Honda VT250! V-twin! The Engine went down due
to faulty engine oil, I am still looking for parts for this baby.” But still, I
took pictures of her as well!
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| Mr.Singh with his wife in front of his shop. |
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| His second stead,Honda VT250. |
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| Honda VT250.Hope to see her on road soon... |
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| Original image of the bike. |
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| Mr. Singh reminds me of 70's actors! |
Lastly, I went to Moon light Studios. A Mall full of cameras
and stuff, Literally 3 floor high! There in front stood a Vijay Super. I didn’t
even bother to meet the owner as I was running short of time. But Still, I
think that two wheeler had been an important part during his initial stages of
business and the owner still remembers it! That’s the reason why is still sits
in front of his shop. A hypothetical theory, but that’s the way I like it to be
imagined!
The beauty is,these guys belong to that generation where there was no facebook or internet to keep one informed or motivated.What I mean is, they kept these bike just because of their love of biking.I am sure for guys like Babban & Mr.Singh , their bikes
is not just a pair of wheels. It’s their passion,love & a result of their dedication
. And for me that truly represents a true biker spirit! Hat’s off to them!
I hope you enjoyed my blog! Not much of a writer so kindly ignore my grammar!
Other Random Pics…
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| Me and my 800! |
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| My sweet 800! |
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| Sid with his angel! |
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| Poser!!! |
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| Flaming fish anyone?! |
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| One hunk on another! |
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| Whenever I point my camera, she starts posing! |
