LOOKING FOR THE THUMP

ROYAL ENFIELD IS INCHING TOWARDS THE END OF ITS PURPLE PATCH AT A TIME RIVALS HAVE LINED UP NEW LAUNCHES TO TAKE IT HEAD ON. CAN ITS NEW BIKE, METEOR350, HERALD THE START OF ANOTHER BULL RUN?

- SUMANT BANERJI

The day Royal Enfield launched Meteor, its latest cruiser motorcycle and the most important launch for the domestic market since adventure tourer Himalayan in 2016, 46-year-old Ajay Verma ambled into the company’s showroom in Noida for a dekko. Verma, who is a father of two and employed with Indian Railways, had been pining for an Enfield for close to a decade but did not buy for one reason or the other — until the Meteor happened, or so it seems.

“It is one of those things for which the heart says yes and the mind says no. I own a car, so I don’t know how much I will ride this. My wife doesn’t support the buying decision either,” he says. “I used to ride a friend’s Bullet in college. I have always wanted to own one. I couldn’t resist this one (Meteor). It feels just right.”

Down south, in tech city Bangalore, 40-year-old Rahul Singh, an HR executive at a multi-brand retail firm, is also eager to check out the new bike. Unlike Verma, he is not sure if it is best suited for him among the six-odd models that Enfield makes. All that the father of a young son knows is that he wants a Bullet. He rides a Honda Activa scooter to work every day instead of his hatchback to avoid the infamous Bangalore traffic. He is also certain his wife will not approve, but like Verma, is ready to earn her wrath on this one. “If it’s a bike, it has to be a Bullet, everything else is a compromise,” he says.