14+ unforgettable ads that will make every biker smile

By the time I was old enough to watch TV, the colour TV was well on its way to becoming an established phenomenon in most households. With idiot box timings strictly controlled by the I&B Ministry, even an ad was something special. You didn’t, and of course couldn’t, flick to the next channel because an ad had just started playing. And some of those ads were rather memorable too. Here are 14 two-wheeler commercials that still bring back great memories.

1. Kinetic Luna – One of the most iconic two wheelers ever to have graced Indian roads also had one of the most iconic TV commercials to go with it. Although ‘safalta ki sawari’ (vehicle of success) was its tag line, the phrase ‘chal meri Luna’ is what we will always remember.

2. Hero Honda Sleek – The bike was nothing more than a cosmetic update to the regular Hero Honda CD 100. But the ad had every bit of glamour that you would never associate with the regular bike.

3. Suzuki Shogun – A bike nearly as iconic as the Yamaha RX100, the Shogun ad set hearts aflame while the bike set fire to the road and houses it crossed in the commercial.

4. Rajdoot 350 – Long before others wanted to dominate the night, the Rajdoot RD 350 commercial was one of the first ads that had the rider wheelie-ing his way through the night.

5. Hamara Bajaj – Possibly one of the best two-wheeler ads made, the Hamara Bajaj ad tugged at heart strings and played on human emotions unlike any other.

6. Bajaj Sunny Zip – The poor guy tries hard to convince his college crush to ride his Bajaj Sunny scooter as a very hummable song played in the background. He finally succeeds only to have her pick up her boyfriend and zoom off into the distance. You couldn’t help but smile at this ‘easy come, easy go’ ad.

7.  Royal Enfield Electra – Possibly the only bike advert to actually feature the company boss – Siddharth Lal – instead of a model or a stunt rider, this ad described what the Bullet meant to the touring enthusiast to the T.

8. Bajaj Avenger – Shot on location in Ladakh, the Avenger ad was all about the spirit of freedom. It talked to the misunderstood youth, the jilted lover and the salaried employee who was bored with his job. It was iconic because it connected with the consumer at a level where he wanted to ‘Feel like God’.

9. Hero Honda CD 100 – Fill it. Shut it. Forget it. Three lines coined two and a half decades ago that still describe what every Hero Honda, and now Hero, is all about.

10. Hero Honda CBZ – Before the Bajaj Pulsar came and edged it out, the bike to die for was the Hero Honda CBZ. And boy, did this iconic bike have an ad to match or what!

11. Suzuki Samurai – The bike with the ‘no probrem’, the Suzuki Samurai ad made you laugh with its genuine humour.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEVbnPM6A5Q

12. Bajaj Pulsar – If this 25-second ad were to be aired today, it would probably become the subject of a heated debate on national telly. But back then, sensitivities weren’t hurt so easily and ads were, well, just ads. Here’s the iconic ad that wanted India’s youth to feel ‘definitely male’.

13. Hero Puch – Stunts and hot women with mopeds? Unthinkable, right? Think again while you watch this ad.

14. Bajaj Pulsar DTSi – Probably one of the few ads that featured the old bike in comparison with the new bike. Shot as slickly as was possible back then, the memory of that stoppie is something that many bike enthusiasts will never forget.

15. Bajaj Caliber 115 – Who will ever forget the sound of ‘Hoodibaba’? One of the most iconic and well known bike ads we can think of.

If you feel we’ve missed out on any, please feel free to let us know and we’ll add it to the list.