Blog | I'm A Woman Motorcyclist, And I Refuse To Be Told Where I Belong

Updated: Sep 16, 2026 15:48 pm IST Published On Sep 16, 2026 15:47 pm IST Last Updated On Sep 16, 2026 15:48 pm IST

Published On Sep 16, 2026 15:47 pm IST

Last Updated On Sep 16, 2026 15:48 pm IST

Last Sunday, I was riding on the same Gurugram roads where, elsewhere, a young woman on a motorcycle was being chased and then was allegedly rammed by a car.

The incident involving Sia has disturbed me deeply. Not only because she was a woman riding a motorcycle, but because it could have been any one of us. It could have been me. It could have been one of the women I train. It could have been any rider, cyclist, pedestrian, or driver simply trying to get home.

Fortunately, Sia was wearing her helmet, gloves, and shoes, which saved her from far more serious injuries in the fall. The entire episode was also captured on an action camera mounted on her motorcycle, and that footage became crucial evidence later. The police subsequently arrested the accused and added the attempt to murder charge to the case. The accused has denied hitting her deliberately and has described the collision as an accident.

But for me, the bigger question goes beyond this particular case.

Why do our roads feel so unsafe? And why does anyone feel entitled to use a vehicle as a weapon against another human being?

I am a motorcycle training instructor and a professional rider, and I have founded my own formal riding academy. I have been riding on Indian roads for close to 20 years and have covered lakhs of kilometres on all kinds of motorcycles. I have seen enough to know that knowing how to operate a vehicle, whether it is a car, a truck, a bus, or a motorcycle, is simply not enough. Driving, or riding, is not only about how to accelerate, brake, turn, and balance. It is also about how to behave on a public road. Road sense, etiquette, and public conduct matter just as much.

Maintain distance. Give way. Signal before turning. Do not use your phone while........

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