Why Are Modified Two-wheelers Becoming Immensely Popular In India?

Customisation allows riders to fine tune the stock bike according to their needs, making it quite a popular custom among enthusiasts. 

• Royal Enfield bikes perhaps sees the highest customisations in India.
• Among its bikes, it’s likely the RE Himalayan that sees the highest mod jobs.
• Indian manufacturer TVS too, sees many people modify its bikes.

The motorbike community, both in India and abroad, has long been a fan of custom motorcycles. As a motorcycle enthusiast, I believe that customising your own motorcycle is a fantastic experience. You can add anything you want, as long as it fits within your budget, from colours to accessories, built, engine, power, handlebar, seats, and so on. 

What Are Custom Bikes?

Custom motorcycles, in layman's terms, are a modified form of a motorcycle with enhanced and added features over its original stock form. These bikes arose as a result of stylish craftsmanship, most of which was designed by well-known manufacturers. They have a distinct pattern and are produced in small quantities. 

History Of Custom Bikes 

Custom motorcycles were first given structure and a name in the 1950s, around the same time that custom cars were introduced. Arlen Ness and Ben Hardy were considered and recognised as the best custom motorcycle artisans in the motorbike community at the time. 

Other companies, such as Royal Enfield, TVS, Harley-Davidson, and Honda, then entered the motorcycle industry and made significant changes. Royal Enfield, in particular, makes extremely custom-friendly motorcycles, after which it’s all up to you to take these bikes to the next level. With the MiY initiative, Royal Enfield has given customers the choice to personalise and accessorise their motorcycles at the time of purchase, truly making them their own.

Why Are Custom Bikes So Popular? 

Motorcycles and scooters are as much a fashion statement as they are a mode of transportation in India. Manufacturers, when they make a bike, keep in mind that it should fit as many people as it can. But it’s not necessary for you to fall in this category. And if you don’t, a bike that could be well-suited for some, might not be so for you. That is neither your nor the bikemaker’s fault. So what do you do then?

This is where customisation comes into play. Customers take a bike and fine tune it in a way that it fits them a lot better. Right from custom brake and clutch levers, sprocket changes, stripping the bike down to even adding extra layers of cladding, customisation ideas are virtually endless.

Famous Custom Houses In India

With such an increase in custom bikes, it’s only natural that it’ll also spawn a lot of custom houses in India. Here are five of the most popular ones: 

1- Rajputana Custom Motorcycles

Vijay, the founder of Rajputana Motorcycles was on his way to becoming a sports journalist when he, on the internet, learnt everything he knew about customising bikes. Of course, instead of becoming a journalist, he went on to become one of India's hippest bike designers. 

2- Vardenchi Motorcycles 

Using Royal Enfield bikes as his foundation, Akshai, who founded Vardenchi Motorcycles, has been producing insane bikes for the past decade now. He has even designed motorcycles for A-listers like Akshay Kumar, Sameera Reddy, and Jackie Shroff.

3- Old Delhi Motorcycles

The owner of Old Delhi Motorcycles, Bobbee Singh, a purist and rebel at heart, specialises in restoring vintage Royal Enfields and transforming them into modern-day beats. He has shown his work on a variety of platforms around the world, as well as building an international customer base in the United States, London, and Germany.

4- TJ Moto

Tushar, before founding this custom house, studied automobile design at Turin's Istituto Europeo di Design, the same institute that created the iconic Cooper Mini. He decided to customise bikes as soon as he arrived in India and his first modification was a Harley-Davidson Iron 883.

5- Road Rage Custom Builds

Gabriel D Zuzarte founded the company in 2009, drawing inspiration from classic American choppers. They also customise cars and RVs in addition to custom bikes. The Squadron is their most popular creation, which has also won awards.

Which Brands Have The Most Customisable Bikes? 

Any custom bike builder will tell you that a Royal Enfield would make an excellent foundation for a custom motorcycle. In fact, the company runs its own custom-bike programme around the world, from which it appears to have conjured up many stunningly beautiful sets of wheels. The Royal Enfield Custom World initiative has been a theatre of art for builders all over the world, and we've seen everything from custom scramblers to track-spec warheads.

What You Need To Know Before Customising Your Bike?

Does reading all of this make you watch to get some tools and start working on your bike right away? Well, we’d reckon you to quickly run through this list that we’ve made of things you should keep in mind before actually making changes to your stock bike: 

• Make sure that the modifications to your bike are legal.
• Let the professionals do the work. 
• ALWAYS choose function over form and DO NOT compromise on safety.
• Inform your insurance company about it or it might void your insurance.