I recently visited Bologna, Italy, home of the Automobili Lamborghini factory, where robots and humans team up to build “dreams” on the URUS assembly line. Outside, there’s a circus of kids, adults, and paparazzi snapping pictures of every car that rolls out. The Lamborghini Museum, a significant part of the factory, is a time capsule on wheels, showcasing models from the first Lamborghini in 1964 to the latest sensations. Each car reflects the culture and vibe of its era, like a rolling history lesson mixed with a V12 engine.
It’s wild to think that Lamborghini started as a tractor manufacturer. Ferruccio Lamborghini, trying to prove a point to Ferrari, ended up building this massive empire just 40 minutes away from Ferrari’s own turf in Modena. Today, Lamborghini is valued at over US $11 billion, and every sale feels like a cheeky wink at Ferrari. Why don’t we have a performance car manufacturer in India, cranking out dream machines with V8s and V12s, dripping in tech and Italian design flair, but made in India? I’m not talking about the budgetfriendly DC Avanti, but a proper sports car. It’s not impossible. Someone just needs to dream big and have the audacity to make it happen. This manufacturer could be a boutique brand, a term used to describe a small, high-end, and exclusive brand, but if the Italians can, so can we! We have the engineering prowess and resources to set up an assembly line for a proud made-in-India supercar. It’s high time we aimed for the exclusive corner of the market. It is not just mass-market cars from Maruti, Mahindra, and Tata, but also the Germans and Italians who take the luxury and performance pie. The potential of the Indian automotive industry is immense, and when we aim for the exclusive corner, the pathway also improves.
I also visited Barcelona for the global launch of the Guerilla, and it was a blast. What impresses me is how Royal Enfield thinks and acts globally, with major launches at iconic places. The global media and riders from all over were praised for RE’s slow but steady recognition in their markets. In New Zealand, they are market leaders in their segment! This success flows from the top, starting with Siddharth Lal, the CEO of Royal Enfield and one of the coolest entrepreneurs in the auto industry. He not only rides and drinks with us like a buddy but even has casual conversations without making you feel like he’s a billionaire. If you don’t live your brand, especially in emotional sectors like motorcycling, you don’t learn the nuts and bolts of it. This emphasis on living the brand in emotional sectors like motorcycling is what keeps us engaged and connected. I can’t recall the last time leaders from Hero, TVS, or Bajaj ditched their suits for riding gear to feel the motorcycle with the bikers!
