Sameer Kumar
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I was with Motoring from 2002 to 2004. I was the road test editor, and drove and reviewed cars.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Many memorable moments, but the ones that particularly stand out are: Driving a Ferrari (a 308 GTSi) for the first time, driving a Ford Escort RS Cosworth, riding a Kawasaki Ninja ZX-12R and, two days a week, having cutting chai and vada pav outside the Business Standard office at 4 p.m. with Srini.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I’m now retired, so I sit at home, read books and watch videos of 500cc motorcycle GP racing from the 1980s-1990s on YouTube.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: My time with Motoring will always be special for me. The cars, the bikes, the camaraderie, the banter, the stories… always grateful to Bijoy for having given me an opportunity to work for Motoring.
Raunak Ajinkya
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I was at Motoring World between 2014 and 2019. In that period, I did, and learned, a lot. As an example, I did make it a point to show up to the office every now and again. I did notice a funny undergrowth beneath my desk, too, and that kind of made me learn my lesson about squatter’s rights. Should’ve gone to the office more often, then. Threw in a bit of writing and driving, too.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Appreciating the finer limits of my ability to construct sentences on a whim with no visible ending mapped out. Like the time I explained to a colleague the rules behind online dating when I was asked what the deal was with Grindr. I was straight, as was she.
Q: What do you do now?
A: A little bit of this, and a lot of nothing. But I’m still linked to the automotive world, if that’s the point of the question.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Although leaving is a decision I don’t regret in the least, I’d be mad to admit I don’t miss Motoring. You’ll read this in most people’s answers, but it’s a place like no other. And just like any great place to work at, it’s the people at the heart of it that make the difference. I was blessed to have a couple of great editors to work under, both of whom gave me the freedom to stretch my legs and be. That’s not how some people function, but it is how I do. In essence, I grew up there. Wouldn’t swap 2014-2019 for anything in the world. Cheers, and happy 25th!
Sherman Hale Nazareth
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: 2015-2016 and then 2017-2019 — Resident Adult Entertainer (hence the column name, ‘Suck, Bang, Blow’).
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Aside from all the times I almost died, it’d have to be the day Kartik made me assistant editor in charge of the motorcycle section — utopia.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I own and run a riding gear store and online website called Moto Wilder, based in Goa. I’ve started an off-road training programme and also built an off road track for motorcycles in Goa. And I’m a guest lecturer on media and content creation at St. Xavier’s College, Goa.
Aadil Naik
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I spent the better part of four years at Motoring World, from 2016 to 2020. As a features writer, I reviewed cars and motorcycles, but also went on some truly amazing travel expeditions, from driving through Tibet to Mount Everest, and joining an expedition from Nepal to Thailand via Myanmar.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: That’s easy. Getting swiped by a sliding BMW M2 Competition, cartwheeling through the air, and landing on the windshield. It was probably my fault — I really shouldn’t have been standing on the outside of a turn with my phone out. On the plus side, all I have to show for it are four stitches on my elbow. My mother still doesn’t know, so shh.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I moved to the other side of the world, to Canada, for a better life and to pursue a career in communications. I’m also a motorcycle instructor on weekends. But what do I do? I mostly still think about motorcycles. .
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Is the sun still hot? Yes, yes, I miss it. Besides the obvious of getting to spend a lot of time in a lot of motorcycles and cars, I miss the writing. I miss being able to bring automobiles to life through words. I miss Motoring’s penchant for not just being a regurgitated spec sheet, but having soul. Of being the place I could truly explain why we love the vehicles we love, how it completes our lives and why it’s all worth it. And I miss the annual Slush Fest.
Srinivas Krishnan
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I think from 1997 onwards till 2013. Started right at the beginning with
the Motoring pages of Business Standard Weekend to a full-blown magazine and website. I did every single thing over those 15-16 years… except overtake Murali K Menon, which I could never do, even with a faster car. This remains one of the lasting regrets of my life.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: How can I answer that?! Over 15 years, there’ll be too many memorable moments, right? Including driving the Merc Gullwing. However, the treasured moment came AFTER quitting Motoring when Neeraj Pandey, a dedicated reader, called me and said how my words kept him going in the sub-zero temperatures and hostile environment of Kargil when he was a soldier. Lump-in-the-throat moment.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I head the mobility practice at India’s leading PR agency, while I continue to write an opinion piece in AutoX, and sometimes other stuff, too.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Haven’t left it yet, so don’t miss it
Ashok George
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: From 2013 to 2015. Mostly rode motorcycles and cars all over the world, and gave people my expert (ahem) opinion whether they wanted to hear it or not..
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: The everyday office life, actually. Although, the biryani run on the Fat Boy comes pretty close.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I head BigRock Dirt Park, India’s finest off-road training centre. Not-so-subtle marketing plug right there..
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: I miss the people the most. Other than putting out some of the best automotive content, the office always felt like a bunch of friends hanging out. Oh, I also miss catching Rohin napping at this desk!
Parameswaran Natarajan
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I think between 2000 and 2004. I tested bikes and cars, shot them, wrote feature stories and test reports, compiled the annual Car Buyer’s Guide, edited text, worked on page layouts with the art team…. didn’t we all do pretty much everything?!
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Being part of the first team. The adrenaline of riding superbikes and cars. The annual Slush Fest. Overnight drives to Delhi from Mumbai. Kheema pav breakfasts after early morning tests…
Q: What do you do now?
A: I am learning to drive a tractor at 4 kph — I guess a farmer’s life takes away the Ferrari and replaces it with a New Holland!
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Not really — because it still is one big family of nutcases who keep in touch! But yes, almost 20 years later, I do miss meeting my lifelong friends often.
Kyle Pereira
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I began working with Business Standard Motoring (BSM) from 2008 to 2013. From 2017 to 2020, I worked with Motoring World as a consultant.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: The interview with Bijoy and Srini that landed me the job at BSM. Riding the Brough Superior SS100 in the UK, albeit in a giant parking lot and not on the road due to me not being included in the bike’s exorbitant insurance policy. Riding (or is it driving?) a Hanseat clone in Indore. Riding an old Enfield to Pondicherry. Driving my first Lamborghini in Shanghai. Driving a Volvo B9R like a lunatic around a test track. The entire bunch playing like children in a sandbox, except with real excavators and bulldozers. Riding back to the office with Kartik from Virar (or was it Vasai) on two commuter bikes like bats out of hell. And the extensive rides and drives with the team. And the…
Q: What do you do now?
A: I work as a communications and content strategist for a bevy of organisations that are at various stages of their growth.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Yes, I do. Because Bijoy and Srini were never just my bosses. They were, and still are, father figures and mentors. This never existed in any prior workplace of mine, and I have yet to find it since. We put a legendary magazine together every month with limited resources at hand. Of course, these were complemented in ample measure by our obsessive zeal to make our readers have as much fun reading the stories as we did compiling them together. It was in our blood, still is, and forever will be!
Murali K Menon
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I worked for Motoring between 1999 and 2003. I joined the magazine from the Business Standard’s news desk. All I wanted to do at that time was travel. So, in return for editing the copies and sending the issue to press every month, I was allowed to take a car — initially from any brand, later, only Fiats because of a sponsorship deal — and roam all over.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: The Raid de Himalaya 2000. I had absolutely no idea what I was signing up for, but I’m glad I did. Very few experiences have been as visceral as the Raid.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I work with Autocar India where I handle branded content.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: I’m not sure if I miss Motoring, or working at the magazine, specifically, but what’s certain is that it has both influenced and enriched my life.
Ruman Devmane
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: 2010-2013 and then 2014-2017. I wandered off into the dunes trying to squeeze into a suit in that gap year.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Dreaming up the 18th anniversary issue — cover to cover — with Kartik, hurtling down the NH8 on a no-stop strategy from Delhi to Mumbai.
Q: What do you do now?
A: Dream up stories car and bike brands like to pay for. Daydream about being a motorcycle writer.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Every single day. Motoring runs deep. I miss just how much we’d push — or be pushed, in my case — to think of every story to its last detail. That intent and fire simply doesn’t exist elsewhere. Can’t, right?
Joshua Crasto
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I first came to Motoring to clean motorcycles in 2004, and ended up doing everything from road testing to art production, and even hurling my best profanities at the publisher while he was hiding in plain sight.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Getting arrested with Shreenand for trying to shoot him doing doughnuts in a ‘borrowed’ kaali peeli Fiat taxi around the CBI office in Mumbai. We fled the scene and then proceeded to arrange traffic cones on the Sea Link and slalom the hell out of that cab. Best cab fare I’ve ever spent in my life.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I build and restore motorcycles. And in my free time, I fly the masses around in a bus at 37,000 ft.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Yeah, because the afternoon naps were pure bliss, but also because I miss working with inspirations like Bijoy and Srini who always encouraged and cheered me on to be the best version of myself.
Vaishali Dinakaran
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I was at Motoring between October 2009 and March 2013. I put the magazine’s motorsport section together, and helped with copy editing and proofing the magazine before it was sent to press.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Ah, my most memorable moment at Motoring was getting a one-on-one interview with Michael Schumacher at the 2011 Indian Grand Prix. I felt like I was walking on sunshine for several weeks after that. I came crashing down to reality when I realised the cover story that month, alas, was the Toyota Prius, and not my Schumacher piece. Snifffffff!
Q: What do you do now?
A: I tell motorsport and automotive stories in video form for the Deutsche Welle. I still do write as much as I can, probably not as much as I’d like, though.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: I certainly do have fond memories of Motoring, and I sometimes feel nostalgic for that time in my life. Motoring happened at the right time, and I think I’ve made some lifelong friendships because of its very existence.
Sachin Rao
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: 2000-2003. I was a senior features writer (all of us, except Bijoy and Srini, were), and my ‘specialism’ was motorcycle travel, as well as reviewing some commuter and classic bikes. That said, I was given the opportunity to do a bit of everything at BSM — from writing columns to attending international motor shows and launches.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: It’s a mix of incredible locations, from Ladakh to Tokyo, and machines, from Harleys to Velocettes. But the glue was a great team: from Saturday beers and Pink Floyd at colleagues’ houses, to cross-country road-trips, to production deadline late nights powered by greasy biryani, it was an ‘adopted family’ vibe.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I live in London and am a commercial editor for ‘The Guardian.’
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: It’s hard not to miss being in your early 20s, full of beans and hitting the open road for a living. And finding my feet in Bombay was an epochal adventure in itself. Once in a while nowadays, when those little flashes of life in a distant dimension break through, I get that exquisite nostalgic tingle I otherwise only associate with adolescent music and young romance.
Janak Sorap
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: Twice. The first stint was in 2017 and the second from 2020. From riding motorcycles and driving cars, to getting to experience new machines first-hand, and writing stories about them.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: The first and every other story that made it to the cover of the magazine. It’s that feeling which will forever remain special.
Q: What do you do now?
A: With carandbike now, testing and reviewing motorcycles and more.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Yes, definitely. It’s a place that lets you have undistilled fun with cars, motorcycles or anything with an engine and write about them in the most personalised way.
Shreenand Sadhale
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: Started in 2005. Finished the first time in September 2006. Then kept coming back every time duty called.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: See photo.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I sit looking smug in the left seat at the pointy end of an aeroplane that’s made entirely from carbon fibre. And no, this carbon fibre is not an optional extra. Beat that, Porsche.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: I miss having Bijoy as a boss. I miss having Josh as a colleague. And I certainly miss not having punched Shumi in the face while I had a chance.
Shubhabrata Marmar
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I joined in 2000 and I left about 8 years later. I opted to test motorcycles and was given a dire warning that I’d never get to test a car. Which is more or less how it was — except that I was thrilled with the arrangement. Apart from that I did what I was told. And many things I wasn’t.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: The were many! But I do have a rather vivid memory of having to tow Bijoy’s beloved (and now broken) Safari in the rain, all the way from Nashik with a Trax that only Param and I seemed to enjoy driving. I drove as gently as I could while Param sat at the back of the Trax monitoring the tension on the makeshift tow strap. And after a very long but reasonably fun drive, we parked at our place. At which point, the Safari the threw a tantrum. Just as it started to rain again, it auto-magically lowered one of its windows, and the Trax’s floor mats had to be deployed to save the day. By the time we got into the house, we were awash in laughter and exhaustion. Which, if you think about it, is Motoring!
Q: What do you do now?
A: I’m a co-founder of MotorInc, a new organisation that approaches automotive content from a fresh, unfiltered perspective.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: They say Motoring is in your blood. Kinda hard to miss that is.
Parth Charan
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I joined Motoring in 2013 and for the next 22 months, sampled several varieties of street food near the office while occasionally reviewing cars and scooters. Utilising the pungent aromas of Wadala’s Industrial estate to jolt me out of my writer’s block, I managed, over the next few months to churn out several race reports, reviews and news bytes.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Walking into the office to find Ruman setting alight a scale model of a Lamborghini Miura and record its movement in slow-mo, is, despite my best efforts, a core memory.
Q: What do you do now?
A: Unable to make it as a professional ninja, I continue to do more or less the same thing I did at Motoring except I’m less conscious about sentence structure and more conscious about my caloric intake. It’s pitiable, I know.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: I wouldn’t say I miss it, but I did learn a lot about this oddball profession at Motoring. Clocked plenty of miles, exercised writing muscles and was given immense creative freedom. Motoring was where I was broken-in, and it was the launch pad for my trajectory so I will always owe it a debt of gratitude.
Amanjot Madan
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: From Jan 2007 till June 2009. Photography, driving, some design coordination, and digging out images from old CDs a lot!
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: There were quite a few. Monsoon mania (I think that was the name), drive from Mumbai to Kanyakumari. The drive with Kartik and Rohin to Kolkata was something!
Q: What do you do now?
A: Sports photographer in New Zealand.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Yes, guess I miss hanging out of cars at 70kmph to get tracking shots.
Aditya Upadhyaula
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: I first walked into the Motoring office in 2006 as an intern, after high-school and before I even joined college. Since then, I have done a couple of stints testing cars at the magazine with the last one ending in 2021.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Wearing a sari and dancing on the streets of Bandra while throwing vada pavs at the crowd during the inaugural Red Bull Soapbox race in Mumbai in 2012.
Q: What do you do now?
A: I am a health specialist working for the World Bank on building resilient health systems to prevent, prepare for and respond to future pandemics.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Yes! I don’t miss waking up at 4 a.m. to get to shoots on time, but I do miss the camaraderie of being around like-minded people doing something they’re passionate about.
Varad More
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: Around 2017-2020 on paper. But my first official stint was in 2013. I did a lot of riding and some very delayed-deadline writing while working at Motoring. Honestly, though, I was with Motoring since I picked up a copy of the magazine in the early 2000s while in college. I still have some of my favourite issues stashed away in a loft, alongside the Auto Indias (yeah, Google that), Overdrives and a select few Autocars that had motorcycle specials.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Trying to ride a cast-iron Bullet with no front brake and fumbling over the reversed brake/gear lever contraption, and leaving a nice long scratch on a parked rickshaw while taking a U-turn. It was magnificent!
Q: What do you do now?
A: I ride and celebrate motorcycles for the sacred fun of it. I also excel at arguing with MS Excel and pseudo-fitness-obsessed 40-year-old motorcycle marketers trying to sell bikes after having sold soap, commercial vehicles, T-shirts and whatnot for all their lives.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: No — because celebrating motorcycles is something I have always found to be the core of the Motoring team, right from its genesis. And that’s something that helped me understand and cherish machines. So no, I don’t miss Motoring because it wasn’t just another situational job — it was more of a journey towards a life well ridden, and Motoring has played a vital role in that sense. So it stays with me. Always.
Rohin Nagrani
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: From the fag end of 2006 until sometime past mid-2016, I managed to snag the keys of pretty much all cars that entered the Motoring garage. In short, as the Road Tester and later the Managing Editor of the magazine, I was responsible for the MOB or Middle Of Book pages. Also played a part in putting together and keeping alive the website, being a face for videos and a host of other things when time permitted. But yeah, prying my hands off the wheel of a great car for my colleagues was indeed hard…
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Waking up every weekday morning and not feeling any lack of motivation to be at work made the 10 years truly memorable. And largely because of the people I had around as colleagues.
Q: What do you do now?
A: A communications professional who works with various automotive companies in providing integrated communications solutions. In short I am still around automobiles, just am on the other side of the table
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: Motoring as envisioned by Bijoy and Srini was a place full of passion, fun and focus on delivering exceptional story telling. It has made me into who I am today, by virtue of the time spent there. I don’t miss it, but hold it in high regard for helping me carve out the path I am on today and in the foreseeable future.
Bijoy Kumar Y
Q: When were you at Motoring and what did you do here?
A: At the inception. All I did was to hire people smarter than me so that I can have fun driving and riding while they toiled. As it turned out the strategy worked. More or less. Happy 25th to all of you.
Q: What’s your most memorable moment at Motoring?
A: Driving my first Ferrari was quite momentous. I cried. Being given the key to a Lamborghini convertible to explore the Canary Islands on a bright sunny day was another. Can’t forget those epic non-stop drives with the whole team to Auto Expo, too.
Q: What do you do now?
A: Heading the Adventure Initiatives division at Mahindra. It is better than… almost as good as… actually, no comparison to running Motoring. Knowing zilch about corporate ways of working helped establish Adventure. You are never scared of something you never thought existed. Amen.
Q: Do you miss Motoring?
A: I do miss the collective emotion that drove us to create and sustain Motoring. Looking back, it was indeed a divine phase. Though I could not hear the world conjuring to make it happen then, I can hear it loud and clear now.
