Hamara Ather?

The Ather Rizta promises to be a family scooter while retaining the fun-to-ride aspect that is synonymous with the Ather brand. We take a closer look

- Sayantan De

THE FOUNDERS OF ATHER ENERGY SET out to create a performance scooter with handling to match and this they achieved with the 450 series. It packed a bunch of thoughtful features to make life easier on a day-to-day basis. However, "performance" is a niche market in India, so Ather decided to apply their know-how to creating their version of the ultimate family scooter and they called it the Rizta. We think this is a stylised version of the Urdu word rishta, which means "relation". Can the family scooter become a family member? We went to Nandi Hills in Bengaluru to find out.

Ather went for a rather conservative styling for the Rizta, which means while the design is not going to excite anyone, it is also not going to offend anyone. The scooter's bodywork has flat panels and straight lines, which give it a functional appearance. This works in the scooter's favour, particularly with the dual-tone colours available on the higher trims, though the monotone colourways are appealing on account of their simplicity. The flat floorboard and the huge seat are all straight lines as well and the exposed belt drive of the 450 series has been given a neat little cover on the Rizta.

Thanks to the aforementioned huge seat and tall-ish handlebar, it was easy to find a comfortable riding position as I had ample room to slide back on the seat. We tried two-up riding as well and, true to Ather's claim, it was a cinch to fit two riders and a packed camera bag between them on the seat.