Ye Dosti…

Thanks Castrol (www.facebook.com/CastrolBiking) for making me do what I was wanting to for a long time. Write an ode to my bike of 6 years… my Pulsar 150.

I love my bike. I do not believe that the first people who invented the grotesque looking iron spokes thing called bicycle ever felt that this will be the beginning of a very unique relationship between a man and a machine which will possibly last forever. I have half mind to believe that the famous “dosti” song in Sholay was sung not for the two heroes of the movie but for the bike which was taking them places. How many guys do you know who have seen the “World’s fastest Indian” and not felt a similar binding to their own machine? I truly have…

My P150, as I affectionately call her (I might not be really creative but I do have feelings) is my second “bike”. The first one, bought by my dad was a TVS NV Special scooter bought way back in 2001. I somehow had a liking for the word “Special” and never let that not be mentioned whenever asked which vehicle I had. Running around with my NV Special on Delhi roads, I knew that my relationship with engines on two wheels had just started. Post MBA and first job, P150 was my first purchase in the first month itself in April, 2006. The gleaming black structure with alloy wheels and that awesome 150CC power of the engines on full throttle was something which I used to cherish everyday. Dreams of having numerous girls sitting in the back starting colouring my sleep with all hues found only in the rainbows. (Another matter that these remained mostly just dreams.) All those night adventures to Empire on bikes became a daily routine with my friends. Weekend getaways are still common with my wife – sometimes even on the P150. Name one place around Bangalore which my P150 has not seen and chances are that even I have not seen it!

Its now exactly 6 years since you came into my life. There have been instances when you might have felt bad. The time when I had to leave you at the Bangalore railway station and be off for almost a month while you were just standing in the parking. I was really surprised when I returned and saw you standing right where I had left you! I know you must be feeling lonely now when I leave you parked and go off in the car. But it has nothing to do with our love for each other. You are the one who makes it so easy to navigate this pathetic Bangalore traffic and roads. You are the one who continues to be easy on my pocket with minimum maintenance and still give me 45 kms to every litre…again a wonderful thing with Bangalore fuel prices. You are the one who has got me back home in rain and sun, in midnights and in early mornings, my partner in crime and in peace. Hats off to you, my P150… for having taken me around for almost 60,000 kms and many more to come.