A growing tribe of women bikers in India are shattering stereotypes

It’s no longer a man’s turf as motorcycling festivals, group rides, and solo trails are adding to a thriving women motorcyclists’ fraternity in India

When software engineer Sameera Dahiya bought her first motorcycle in 2015, she had no background in biking. It was a second-hand machine, and the bike owner was skeptical about selling it to her. She recalls, “He actually said to me, ‘I’m not sure if I should sell it to a woman’.” Eight months later, when she bought a new 350cc bike, the response was similar. “I went to pick it up and the salesman asked, ‘Is anyone coming with you or can you take it home by yourself?’” she shares. Dahiya now holds the title of the fastest woman to complete an all-India ride of 16,300 kilometres–across28 states, six Union Territories and over 100 cities, in 24 days and nine hours! She’s just one of many women in the country who have forged ahead with their dream to ride and own a bike, casting aside doubt, fears and prejudice. They make for a formidable presence at biker meetups and festivals, case in point the last India Bike Week (IBW), held in Vagator, Goa. We gauge the throttle of this growing tribe of Indian women motorcyclists.

Riding to bust stereotypes

Almost one of these riders has a backstory that smashes the stereotype. Shilpa Balakrishnan, the first woman to do a solo ride to the four corners of the country recalls how when she bought a bike to commute back in the day, she faced a slew of negative remarks. “People questioned why I bought a big bike, some even asked if I was trying to show off. But I was determined to ride and today I’ve done trails in five Asian countries,” she grins.

For Shabnam Akram, a 58-year-old communications manager from Delhi, her decision to ride came about after she was sexually harassed at a DTC bus stop. She didn’t want to ride on a bus anymore, but could not afford to buy a car. The next choice was riding her husband’s bike. “My father was unhappy about it, but I was going to ride it anyway,” she shares. She took to it so well that she went on to head a women biker group in north India and says her life has changed now. “I don’t fall into a typical biker avatar. I’m reserved, gentle and I have no tattoos. But people started taking me more seriously once I started to ride, as a bike is considered a powerful vehicle and I was on a Royal Enfield Thunderbird. I was still the same person, but suddenly it’s like they could ‘see’ me. Now my aim is for other young women to discover this for themselves, like I did,” says Akram.

G. Meenakshi Rao, an Indore-based deputy Chief Ticket Inspector (CTI), Western Railways, also has an interesting account to share. Having bought a 350cc black Retreat Classic Bullet as a gift for herself on her 32nd birthday, she actually hid it from her family. “Luckily I was working in Jaipur then and I could do so because my parents always hated bikes,” she says. The mother of one upgraded to a 411cc Royal Enfield Himalayan bike and went on a six-day trail in Rajasthan last August where she faced sexism. She recalls, “It was raining hard all through the trip, making it tough to ride. Plus, Google Maps don’t work in some places so you have to stop and ask for directions and whenever we did, a crowd of men would gather around and stare, some even coming too close to us, as they had not seen women on bikes before. It felt unnerving; I guess they had not seen or heard of women riding a motorcycle.” says Rao.

Aisha Ameen, also known as the ‘Burqa Rider’, is out to prove how wearing a hijab should not prevent anyone from riding a bike. You’ll find her vrooming away around Lucknow in an abaya on her motorcycle. “I remember when I was 18, my parents weren’t happy. They said, ‘log kya kahengey? Accha nahi lagega’. But I was determined to continue riding. People feel women can’t do things in a burqa and I wanted to change that mindset. Now when I ride, some do pass comments, but a lot of people give me a thumbs-up and that feels good.” Ameen is now gearing up to ride to the India-Nepal border with her group next month.

When wanderlust meets challenges

These women bikers love nothing more than hitting the most gorgeous trails from icy routes in the north to the coastal ribbon highways of the south.Aparna Bandodkar, a Mumbai-based dentist, finds her destress mantra among pine tree-lined roads of Uttarakhand, the barrenness of Spiti as well as the lush Western Ghats. Her most memorable ride? “At Dhanushkodi, Kanyakumari, where I was witness to both the sunrise and sunset at the same spot. It’s the confluence of the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean and it’s just amazing to experience that,” she shares.

While the rides provide memorable views, they come with gruelling challenges like harsh weather and treacherous terrain. Ace biker Dimple Singh who was chosen among 25 other women riders totake part in an All-Women Sacred Tour to Ladakh organised by the Indian Army, shares her experience of this. “The most challenging day of our entire expedition was during the ride from Chang La Pass to Pangong Tso Lake. Temperatures were between -26°C to -28°C and some of us got frostbite while riding. Now bikers usually ride to Ladakh in season time, but we women chose to ride off-season. It sure felt great to prove that a woman can accomplish anything if given the opportunity.”

In another instance, Dahiya had a near-fatal experience when coming up close to a glacier. It was on the way to Kargil from Padum in Zanskar, just a few kilometres before the Pensi-la Pass. She narrates, “At 16,000 feet it was a magical view with snow-capped mountains all around, but it also went on to be extremely challenging as we had a sudden weather change. It started raining and soon, the rain turned into snowfall. My hands literally froze. Rains in the mountains are trickier, because the bike gears get stuck, your fingers become numb, you’re unable to use the brakes and clutch and since you keep the visor open, and the rain hampers your visibility. At this point, it’s all about how your mind reacts; that’s the real test,” she says.

Strength in numbers

While motorcycles are largely considered a manly pursuit, today, it’s a far cry from that. A bunch of riding groups and social media platforms are bolstering the scene for women. Urvashi Patole, founder of the first-ever women’s motorcyclist group, The Bikerni, affirms. “When we began, we were just a handful; but today we’re around 2,500 active riders. Women are also getting into racing and stunts. What’s interesting is there’s a rise in the percentage of women owning a motorcycle in their own name. Earlier if they bought a scooter or a bike, it was always in their husband’s or father’s name. And they’re also opting for heavier superbikes, from 800-cc to 1,200-cc and above so they can participate in adventure workshops to upskill themselves.” 

The movement is pan-India. Sarika Mehta, a psychologist and avid biker who has featured in FIM Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (International Motorcycling Federation), started Biking Queens in Surat in 2017 to shatter societal norms. “Some women who first joined came from conservative backgrounds, some were very shy and a few others were overweight and wondering if they could ride a bike. But they all did. Riding is all about the inner journey. You may ride any number of kilometres, but the trip you take inside, that brings you out of your comfort zone, is what matters.” Along with two riders from her group, Mehta embarked on a Surat-London ride covering three continents and did another expedition covering 6,000 villages in India with 45 women riders. “Everyday we get calls and queries from women who want to sign up,” she says.

Entrepreneur Tenzin Metoh from Arunachal Pradesh who loves chasing adventure on her 955cc Ducati is glad to note the growing women’s biking scene in north-east India. “Things have definitely changed for the better, especially in Mizoram and Nagaland, plus [there are] newer women bikers’ clubs in Arunachal Pradesh. All of this has a lot to do with social media. Women check out how confident and empowered other female bikers are and want to follow suit,” she states.

Ritika Lahiri, ex-cabin crew-in-charge who quit her job of nine years to take up motorcycling full-time, still gets asked why she gave up a well-paying job. “I know biking is completely opposite to the glam job I had, but it’s fulfilling. I now train other women to find their love for motorcycling. It’s time we shifted our perceptions. A machine doesn’t know gender, so why do we differentiate?” she asks.

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