The motorcycle
Royal Enfield 500 Bullet Machismo
Royal Enfield, the oldest motorcycle marque in the world, was founded in 1893 as a maker of rifles and bicycles, going on in 1901 to build its first motorized bicycle — beating Harley-Davidson, founded in 1903, by two years… In 1932 it launched the Bullet, so named to evoke the idea of being as fast as a bullet, a model destined to become one of the most iconic and long-lived motorcycles in history. In India, the single-cylinder 350 and 500 Bullet models are still produced at full tilt and are hugely popular — so every mechanic knows how to work on one.
I turned to Mukesh Motors for the rental, run by the ever-busy J.P., who owns twenty-two of them and rents out the 500 model — with a front disc brake and a generous metal luggage rack (big enough for two 5-litre fuel cans) — for 1,000 rupees a day (a little under 15 euros). The price includes spare parts and an exciting lesson in riding through Indian traffic. I looked at photos, did my research, and made up my mind: I would travel on a motorcycle designed by a factory that originally made rifles. A Bullet, fittingly enough.
A Royal Enfield Bullet Machismo 500.
- English design.
- Built in India.
- Rear drum brake, single front disc brake.
- Four-stroke 500cc single-cylinder engine.
- Electric and kick starter.
- Top speed 100/110. You don't need more in India — I never went above 90 km/h myself.
The bike is light, stiff on its suspension and short on braking power. Getting any real result out of the front disc takes a firm hand on the lever. Overall, with one person aboard, it behaves respectably — I imagine braking distances stretch considerably with two. It sips fuel (25–30 km/l), and with the 11-litre tank plus a 5-litre spare can, you get a guaranteed range of over 350 km. The road-tyre compound is typically very hard (I never got a puncture).
