Rebooting Hamara Bajaj

RL Ravichandran, who was part of the Bajaj Auto leadership team during the transition to motorcycles, goes down memory lane with Murali Gopalan to 2001 when the new Hamara Bajaj commercial was conceptualised. He also remembers how RahulBajaj was as upbeat about this campaign which was different from the memorable one of 1989 and yet struck a chord with the young generation of 2001. It was the new era of motorcycles and Bajaj Auto was on the cusp of change.

- Murali Gopalan

RL Ravichandran is an unabashed admirer of the late Rahul Bajaj and makes no bones about the fact that the former Chairman of Bajaj Auto had been a tremendous influence on him.

RLR, as he is more popularly known, was part of the leadership team at Bajaj Auto between 1998 and 2005 and played a big role in steering the company's foray into motorcycles when it was breaking out of the mould of a geared scooter manufacturer.

It was also among his most challenging tenures in the two-wheeler arena - prior to this, RLR had spent valuable years with TVS Motor Company while his next move after Bajaj Auto would be to spearhead the historic turnaround of Royal Enfield.

While reminiscing at his Chennai home about the wonderful moments spent with Rahul Bajaj, RLR's mind goes back to Hamara Bajaj where the memorable campaign of 1989 "touched millions of hearts" in India. "Riding a Chetak was the ultimate dream for anyone across the country," he says.

These were the halcyon days of the geared scooter where Bajaj was a part of every household in India. Everyone wanted a share of the brand and were willing to wait for years to own one. Yet, dark clouds were looming on the horizon in the form of the motorcycle revolution. Japanese manufacturers were setting up shop in India and there was change in the air with top brands typing up with local manufacturers.

This was the time RLR had come onboard Bajaj Auto and knew that change was in the air with the diehard scooter manufacturer poised to shift loyalties to motorcycles. It was also time for a new campaign since "we were shifting focus from scooters to modern bikes". The company had a technical tie-up with Kawasaki and, as in the case of other Indo-Japanese alliances in the two-wheeler space, was keen on wooing customers into its fold.