It began as an off-beat trend in America decades ago, and now it's here. The motorcycles are called Choppers and originally, bikers would literally hack off parts that they thought were superfluous and ride industrial looking behemoths.
They have since evolved into personal fashion statements, with custom-built frames, suspension (usually characterised by an extremely long front fork), lavish paint work, and a lively, not-always eardrum-friendly exhaust note.
Now, thanks to 26-year-old Akshai Varde, and his motorcycle customs shop, Vardenchi, you can have one in India as well. The name Vardenchi sounds Italian-exotic, but is actually Marathi for 'Built by Varde.' The name adorns some of the most flamboyant Choppers in India today. Usually built with a Enfield Bullet as the base, Vardenchis wear Varde's own swingarm design, customised body panels among a long list of changes.
At an average cost of Rs 2 lakh (Rs 200,000), a Vardenchi isn't cheap. But, then, a similarly modified American custom would cost anything from $25,000 upwards (Rs 11.5 lakh). Varde says, "We generally average about four choppers a month. But it's only been two years since we started, so I don't really know what my turnover is. Margins vary based on the product and its design, but I aim at 100 per cent."
"Our customers range from celebrities to industrialists and anyone in between who is willing to spend money to acquire a personal statement of a motorcycle. The designs are ours, but built to their guidelines and it takes us as much as two and a half months to deliver them. They want style, flamboyance, and the look. And that's what we do," says Varde.
"Over the next two years, I see the business grow two to three times over. Motorcycles in films and the Discovery series' have helped and I think we have the potential. Geographically, I'd like to expand the business. Bangalore is rapidly becoming an important market. IT professionals return from abroad have seen Choppers there and can easily afford machines that we make," says Varde.
About how the business started, Varde says, "It started with a passion for modifying my friends' motorcycles, and it become my life. The process of creating a new Vardenchi everyday is what drives me and my small team and it's the same passion that fuels our bikes."