Tribute to Veenu Paliwal (1972–2016)

Veenu Paliwal (1972–2016) a well-recognized Indian motor biker from Jaipur, Rajasthan. Known as the “Lady of Harley” (Dunes Harley-Davidson) and “HOG Rani”.

She once noted that her inspiration was her father since childhood, who himself was an “avid biker”.

Her love for motorcycles started in 1990 when she learnt to ride a bike from her friends in college. However, She herself did not own any motorcycle then.

Then marriage and work were roadblocks in her ride and she had to give up doing what she loved.

She was an entrepreneur who owned a bar and lounge named Chah bar in Jaipur’s Diggi palace.  The passion for riding was still burning bright in her as she rose to become one of India’s top woman bikers after her divorce. Veenu riding her Harley Davidson 48 on the narrow streets of Jaipur were soon a familiar sight.

“I think I am the only woman Harley rider here, so people recognise me,” the 44-year-old mother of two said in an interview with Hindustan Times.  “I’m constantly asked ‘Aren’t you scared? How do you manage the weight? What does it cost?’”In the interview with HT she says “My divorce came through and I settled back into my life. I wanted to do something for myself. So I bought a Harley and, with my children away at college, every weekend is now spent riding to Delhi or to places around Jaipur. Bike helped me reclaim my life after divorce”

“There are constant challenges for women in today’s male-dominated world. It is up to us to break out and prove that we are capable of anything. Biking was one such way of telling both men and women that, ‘hey, we women can ride too’,” she had said in an interview with India Times

Known for driving a Harley Davidson at 180 kmph, Veenu had clocked 17,000 km since November 2015 and aimed to hit 50,000 km in a year, before upgrading to Harley’s touring bike Road King.

Riding a bike gave her a sense of accomplishment and an increased awareness of road safety.

She adds in the HT article on Women bikers “Biking has also taught me about road safety. In a car, there’s a sense of security and you tend to take more risks as a result. On the bike, you have no buffer, so all your senses are alert. Biking makes you look at things, even road safety, from a different perspective.”

“When you’re on a bike, all your senses are aware and on overdrive. You have to be alert because you’re on your own, and if anything happens, you have to take control,” she had said.

This summer, Veenu wanted to teach her teenage daughter to ride so that she could follow her footsteps. She was also planning to make a documentary on her motorbike journey across the country.

She was on a countrywide sponsored tour on her Harley Davidson along with fellow biker Deepesh Tanwar  when her motorcycle skidded off the road at Gyaraspur, 100 kilometres from Bhopal the evening of 11th April 2016.

She was rushed to a primary health centre and then to the Vidisha district hospital, where doctors declared her brought dead, police said. An autopsy identified that excessive internal bleeding was the cause of her death. Though she was wearing protective gear.

Forty-four-year-old Veenu was doing what she loved when she was killed in the road accident.

Her friends & family bid her a tearful adieu. But,Tributes keep pouring in on Facebook.

Adventure & Wildlife Magazine offers heartfelt tributes to Veenu Paliwal, the HOG Rani, The Lady of Harley for her spirit of adventure and her dedication to biking, May she ride forever on the eternal horizon…