Bangalore Celebrates 8th International Jawa Yezdi Day

Over 400 bikers gather for a journey back in time

The Kanteerva Stadium in Bangalore was a sight to behold on early Sunday morning as hundreds of bikers proudly displayed their gleaming rides for all to see. The occasion was the 8th International Jawa Yezdi Day – a day which celebrates the power and legacy of these 175, 250 & 350cc bikes that were sold in India from the year 1960 up to 1996. 
The event was kick-started with a display of all the classic Jawa and Yezdi bikes according to categories.  After that the organizers held a felicitation ceremony for all the Jawa and Yezdi mechanics who have dedicated so much of their time and skills towards the maintenance and upkeep of these machines. Finally, the riders were flagged off amidst much cheering by the ace rallyist RH Vikram. The bikers then rode to the Channapatna Café Coffee Day for lunch.
The Bangalore wing of the Jawa Yezdi Motorcycle Club or BJYMC was formed by four bike enthusiasts –Amrit, Lokesh, Brian and Sam who decided to commemorate the occasion by giving bike owners and enthusiasts a chance to meet up and exchange notes. The first year of the meet (2008) they expected only about 60 bikes and were pleasantly surprised when over 120 bikers turned up. After that, the club has gone from strength to strength – with the second Jawa Yezdi day in 2009 witnessing participation from over 350 bikes. This time the team expects more than 400 bikers to be part of the celebrations.

 “It is sheer passion and love for these bikes that has made this annual event such a huge success”, said Brian Ammanna, one of the founders of the club. “When we started we never hoped to discover so many like-mined enthusiasts. But the scale of the event only goes to show the popularity these bikes enjoy to this day. Which is why our club motto is ‘Forever Bike, Forever Bikers’” signs off Lokesh JM, another co-founder.
These bikes made a mark in Indian Automotive history as an exotic piece of machinery and were known for their reliability and low maintenance costs. They were last manufactured at the Ideal Jawa factory in Mysore before the company went bankrupt in 1996. But passionate Jawa Yezdi lovers have rallied round to revive the former glory of the few surviving bikes and the International Jawa Yezdi Day provides them the perfect platform. Across the globe, the second Sunday of July is celebrated as the International Jawa and Yezdi Day.