Surat: The Desai family in Gujarat's Surat has a vintage collection of 45 bikes dating back to World War II. The bike collection ranging from Royal Enfield, popularly known as Bullet, Lambretta, Yezdi and Jawa and many more has become a treasure trove for Siddharth Desai, son of Kripalani Desai.
The Desai family is basically associated with the farming profession. But, their passion for old bikes started way back in 1990. Talking about the fondness for vintage motorcycles that, too, of World War II, Siddharth recounts, "The love for vintage bikes began in 1990 when my father started collecting them from various cities. My father was very fond of bikes. He was very particular about purchasing old bikes. My dad's hobby gradually turned into a full-time passion."
The Desai family has converted a portion of their house into a Bike Museum. A mechanic has been deputed, who takes care of the vintage bikes. To keep them in a running condition, these bikes are serviced four to five times a month. "We have a variety of old bikes such as Husqvarna, BSA M20, Norton 16, Triumph Tiger and many more. The BSA M20 was used during World War II. Our vintage collection dates back to 123 years," Siddharth said.
"The BSA M20 motorcycle was manufactured for using them in World War II. Thereafter, these bikes were brought to India by the Britishers. The British police in India were using bikes for policing purposes. Although, these vintage two-wheelers have the registration number of our country. But they were imported from foreign countries," he said.
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The Bike Museum also has a pedal-driven Royal Enfield 1910, which has become a centre of attraction among bike lovers. "Making a vintage collection of these bikes was quite difficult in those days. You can purchase a new bike easily from a showroom. But, making the collection of old two-wheelers was quite cumbersome. We also procured these bikes from Pune, Nashik, Rajasthan and Hyderabad city. But, they were lying in the owners' house. The bikes were not in a running condition. A lot of restoration work was done to make them in a running condition."
