India Bike Week (IBW) 2025 was supposed to happen in Goa. Tanya and I planned to ride down to Goa and attend the event. But the event moved from Goa to Panchgani. We were thrilled as we avoided a long ride and could better manage our busy schedules.
Although IBW is a 2-day event, we decided to attend only day 1. And that was enough. We started early in the morning from Pune to avoid the traffic and chaos near Panchgani, and it was the right call. We had a nice Breakfast at Rustom's and then headed to our Airbnb without any traffic trouble. After resting for a while, we made our way to the event on foot. We had planned to walk to a Biking event; it sounds silly, but given the parking chaos and wait times, our decision was justified.
We met known and unknown faces at the event. After Maral's talk and a few pleasantries, we went to cheer Saimah at her drag race. I took the opportunity to get a selfie with the now very famous content creator and celebrity HER_ONBIKE. As is common when bumping into fellow riders, I bumped into Vartika (Softy) too. Our ritual of grabbing a selfie every time we meet continues.
Saimah, Aniket, Frankie, and we roamed around the event, visiting various stalls and soaking in all the excitement. After a long wait for food, we grabbed some bites, and then, as it was getting late, we made our way back to our stay. We didn't wait for the usual live band sessions or after-party.
The second dinner story is an epic one that needs a longer coffee session. The next day, Tanya and I made our way back to Pune. All in all, a great event.
Kudos to the organisers who pulled off the event despite having to switch destinations, and to everyone who had to change their travel plans. IBW, as always, is an amazing place for like-minded motorcycling enthusiasts to gather, share stories, and keep the community alive.