JAWA´S RETURN TO INDIA: A CLASSIC REVIVAL
Sunday Times
It’s Sunday, and the new Jawa showroom in Jaipur, India, is bustling. Four employees are kept busy. A policeman sits on a bar stool, ordering a blue motorcycle, while another man, around thirty years old, heads out for a test ride, and two other customers wait on a leather sofa. The Czechoslovakian brand Jawa is making a triumphant return to India. The motorcycles designed for the local market are currently manufactured by the Indian company Mahindra under a licensing agreement with the Czech firm Jawa Moto, which unveiled the new Jawa 300 model in November. In March, over 100 Jawa dealerships were opened across India, and this month, the first Jawa 300 and Jawa 42 motorcycles were delivered to customers.
Long tradition - it rides!
Jawa began exporting motorcycles to India after World War II. In 1961, motorcycles were manufactured in India under a license from Ideal Jawa Ltd., and from 1971 to 1996, they were sold under the Yezdi brand. According to legend, the name "Yezdi" is derived from the Czech word “jezdí,” meaning “it rides.” In October 2016, Mahindra & Mahindra acquired the rights to the Jawa brand for India and Southeast Asia. The company currently produces the classic Jawa 300, which in its retro style, clearly draws inspiration from the famous Czechoslovakian Jawa 250/353, the more affordable Jawa 42, and the Jawa Perak, which references the iconic Czechoslovakian Jawa 250 known as Pérák. The motorcycles are priced between 51,000 and 62,000 CZK. The Jawa 42 is available in six color combinations, while the Jawa 300 comes in three colors, with the classic dark red being the most popular.
200 million registered motorcycles
India currently has over 200 million registered motorcycles, and the number continues to grow. Jawa dealerships are opening not only in Delhi and Mumbai but also in rural areas in places few people in the Czech Republic have heard of, such as Pinjore in Haryana or Siliguri in the foothills of the Himalayas. Each new showroom opening is met with enthusiastic crowds of fans. “Everyone knows that Jawa is originally from Czechoslovakia, and they really appreciate it,” says Manish Saini, an employee at the Jawa dealership in Jaipur and the president of the local Jawa Yezdi club, who also coordinates all Jawa clubs in India.
Glory from family photos
“Our club meets once a month for a ride across Rajasthan. We have about 50 members, and once we had 118 Jawa or Yezdi motorcycles at a gathering. We ride in the Thar Desert, where you can fall into the sand dunes,” continues Manish Saini. Once a year, in July, an all-India Jawa day is held. The older generation still remembers the sound and design of the famous Czechoslovakian motorcycles, while the younger generation knows the brand’s glory from family photos.
A dream job
Manish Saini also collects motorcycles – he has two Yezdi bikes, one Suzuki, and two Jawa wrecks in his yard, while his shed holds engines, carburetors, lights, tanks, seats, and other Jawa accessories. “I find old parts for Jawa from nearby villages, online, or through friends in the club,” he explains. Saini has now ordered a white Jawa 300, which will add a sixth motorcycle to his collection. “The strength of Jawa is its simple maintenance and beautiful classic design. In India, people are talking about the rebirth of the Jawa legend,” says Manish Saini, who previously worked as a pharmacist and had motorcycles as a hobby until he landed his “dream job.”
