RIDING THE FUTURE

Nine days. Three states. One electric motorcycle. Infinite possibilities.

- WORDS DRUMIL MODI PHOTOGRAPHY DIVESH VYAS

Rain hammered against my visor as Mumbai blurred behind me. Somewhere between the chaos of honking rickshaws and the calm hum of the AERA beneath me, the Aerathon began.

The Aerathon is MATTER’s audacious experiment: to ride the AERA through every state of India, proving that electric motorcycles aren't confined to short commutes or city limits. Our role? A 1,500-kilometre leg from Mumbai to Bangalore, tracing Maharashtra’s hills, Goa’s coastline, and Karnataka’s forests before arriving in the tech capital. One machine, no backup plan, nine unforgettable days ahead.

Leaving Mumbai felt like swimming upstream through a concrete river. Diesel fumes choked the air, buses lurched like prehistoric beasts, and the impatient honk-and-swerve rhythm of the city threatened to swallow us whole. Yet the AERA floated through it all, whispering forward with purpose. Not the lifeless silence of some EVs, but a purposeful hum paired with the 4-speed Hypershift gearbox, giving me clicks and shifts to play with—a tactile connection between rider and road that pure automatics simply can’t match.

As Mumbai's concrete tentacles finally loosened their grip, the Western Ghats rose like sleeping giants ahead. Rain streaked silver across the tarmac, turning the world into an impressionist painting. Normally, I'd worry about heat buildup or moisture playing havoc with electronics, but the AERA’s liquid cooling system and IP67 protection didn’t even flinch. The bike seemed almost to relish the challenge, its systems humming contentedly as we climbed higher into the monsoon’s embrace.