Biker Divas | Superbike queen Maral

[00:00:01] Biker Divas with Rajakta, Born to Ride She got married when she was on her bike to ride a solo world ride. Then she was pregnant but she did not stop. When this girl finished her world tour, she was pregnant for 6 and half months.

[00:00:33] Maybe some lady took this decision. She was born in Iran but she used to say very proudly, I am an Indian. She is a fashion designer by profession but not enough. She is an artist, a marketing professional, a motivational speaker, a campaigner of women rides

[00:00:56] and most importantly a biker. Whereas in Iran, by law women cannot ride a bike. That is why Maral is very excited to take this journey. Do you know what Maral's meaning is? You are Iran Hindi. So Maral, Hindi or English?

[00:01:19] You know I do understand and if it is not very difficult. And yes but for speaking also I mean I usually used to speak whenever that I needed when I was on a bike. But whenever that I speak everybody laugh at me

[00:01:35] because I have a very funny accent. And plus I just use the verb as Karoo and then I just say all the senses with Karoo. Like Aisa Karoo, Aisa Karoo. I mean my Hindi is just like my Hindi. This is Maral Yazalu, our biker diva. I am Prajakta.

[00:01:55] Today we are talking to Maral Yazalu who is known as Queen of Superbikes of India. Who is the founder of the women's superbike club in India. Okay I was born in Iran and I brought up there in North of Iran.

[00:02:13] And then I moved to India when I was 20 years old. And I have done my education there from University of Pune. Got my MBA and PhD in University of Pune. So why India? Why India? Yeah because I always had such a good memory and feeling about India.

[00:02:38] My mom was in India traveling throughout North to South around 10-15 years before I come to India. And I always heard really nice stories about India. And that was why I wanted to come to India and be there. Wow, that's our biker diva Maral Yazalu.

[00:03:02] So how did Maral become a biker? Let's find out in our next segment whose name is Kickstart. Kickstart on Biker Divas. You know I didn't know then how much I love biking. In Iran women are not allowed to ride a motorbike.

[00:03:25] And when I came to India then I fell in love with bikes and I started riding. And this is how I rode into many places and plus I just after that gone after the world ride.

[00:03:40] And why bike? Because whoever sit on a bike they understand the feeling which is a really really different feeling when you are on a bike than you are in a car or the plane. And whoever sit on a bike and ride they never ever can stop riding.

[00:03:59] Yeah, that's true. So this is our biker diva Maral Yazalu. Maybe she will be another woman biker who even after being pregnant she went on a ride. That's the only decision Maral took. So what happened? Do you know in a few minutes?

[00:04:19] In our show whose name is Biker Divas. I am with you Prajakta. This show is about the ladies who have shown something amazing in the biking world. Today we have Maral Yazalu whose name has also become a record in 2018.

[00:04:52] That record is highest mileage on a super bike for ladies with over 2,50,000 km. And maybe that's why Maral is called Queen of Superbikes of India. Do you know? Another interesting thing about Maral is that when she was on her world tour on solo ride

[00:05:15] she decided to continue riding despite being pregnant. So what was the story? My husband is British. He is from London. And he followed me to 15 countries on the way. Like I said bye and I left on a motorbike.

[00:05:41] And then I left and every month once he flew to a country which I was there. Met me and gone back. Then halfway through he proposed and I said yes to it. And we had the wedding in Peru in Machu Picchu.

[00:06:00] Then from there one day after the wedding I sat on a motorbike and continued the world ride solo. I got to know that I'm pregnant start of Africa. And then I checked with my husband and I said I'm pregnant.

[00:06:14] And my husband said is your decision because you're going to be the mama. You have your gut feeling and you see what you want to do. If you think you can and there's no problem then continue. If you think no is not okay you want to come back.

[00:06:34] I'll be joe come back. And then I thought this is something which I don't advertise for it because it's really dangerous for a woman to be pregnant and be on a heavy bike. But my situation was really different because if I stopped my world ride

[00:06:54] I couldn't get back to it because if you have a baby, if you are a mama then you cannot be a crazy biker on a bike because you cannot leave your baby again and go for the ride.

[00:07:06] You know I could leave my husband but I couldn't leave my child to go back like now. Then I decided I checked with my doctor. He's a really good doctor, Dr. Abba in Delhi. I called her and I said doctor I'm pregnant now.

[00:07:25] What do I do? I have a world ride. And doctor Abba said there's no problem. You just continue your ride and enjoy. Wow! Seriously? She was like yes you already been to so many countries. Just be careful. I'll be speed control and then don't make yourself very tired.

[00:07:47] But just go and enjoy. I said okay and then she was like when the baby comes out you cannot go back to your ride. Now you have nine months to enjoy. I said and then I was in Africa. In Africa women are carrying heavy stuff in their head.

[00:08:05] They have two, three kids are pregnant working on a field and looking at them they gave me strength. And I was like you know what they are doing all this tough job being pregnant. Why I can't ride in a bike when I'm pregnant?

[00:08:20] I've gone for two countries with my baby and I didn't want to know the baby's gender. I wanted to surprise because outside of India you're allowed to know the gender. Anywhere that you do the sonography they ask you do you want to know the gender?

[00:08:39] They will tell you. My husband and me we wanted to keep it surprise. And we didn't want to know what it is. But everybody was saying like you're gonna have a boy, you're gonna have a boy

[00:08:51] but I was like no I really wanted to have a baby girl. Oh baby always a small cute little key and then they were like no the shape is like a baby boy and this and that and when the baby came out was a baby girl.

[00:09:08] I have a very very cute baby girl. So when your world tour ended how long did you have it? 6 months pregnant. I finished my world tour back in Delhi and then 3 months after that I had my baby. That is so inspiring.

[00:09:31] This is our show Biker Diva and today's Biker Diva is Mara Liya Zallu. It's a very very challenge like just imagine you sit on a motorbike for one and a half years like 550 days. Yeah. It's a queen. Even at night in the tent. It's a blanket.

[00:10:05] And like with a bike breakdowns. Can you believe I never had a puncture? Everybody asked me if you get punctured what do you do? I said I know how to fix a puncture but I never got punctured in the world right.

[00:10:24] But it's a some problem like a bike go. There is a racing chai and extreme weather. It's very very hot like 45 degrees 47 degrees. Then the other tent like in closer to the Ushuaia like South America towards Antarctica.

[00:10:47] Really cold I was riding in zero degree minus degrees and really really cold. And many places with a quiet man in the hill like for 4-5 days that was not a single human being just like 2-3 people may be passing by.

[00:11:05] And then I had to eat whatever I have carrying on the bike like a biscuit or fruits or something that I had in the bike. And they're like you know the challenge is very very high because just even you imagine if you want to live in the city

[00:11:19] for 500 days alone not having a house and still in the city you know how it is but language is different. You know everything is different when you're on a world ride.

[00:11:32] If I want to tell you about challenges I can just make a book about the challenges that I had in the world ride. Okay so I heard you had an accident during World Tour. Yes, World Ride became a Mexico Accident.

[00:11:51] Like I had one accident in Mexico which I was changing the lane in the highway and that was the road had a different level. Like we said Eki Highway like Tarmac Road and Toro Sa like 4-5 inches up Ernicho.

[00:12:12] And when I just changed the lane from one lane to another lane my bike hit that difference level of tarmac and I had a really bad fall and we so put a bike spin which I got in the ground.

[00:12:24] But nothing happened to me because I was wearing all my biking gear. I just got bruises and just like little bit of tear on my riding gears. But people also really helped because in the highway when you have an accident the worst thing that can happen

[00:12:44] is just another car comes and crush you on the road. But all the cars stopped and they blocked the road and that's the reason no other car came at all. That was once and in Africa I had three breakdowns. Okay.

[00:13:00] Met a bike 3 times stop middle of the road like Eki Bar with Sabah which country I was. I was in riding after South Africa. I was in the country after that in Nata the area was called Nata is I was riding at night

[00:13:25] and there was heavy rain and full of potholes but because I've been riding in India for so long I felt like home. I was like I bought actually it's like exactly like India. Okay. And then I was just like middle of the night.

[00:13:40] I hit the really bad pothole and I banned the rim. The rim of the bike got banned and the front wheel just that had no air left but I couldn't stop because I saw the board which said do not stop wild animal zone. Yeah.

[00:13:58] And there was nobody on the road. There was no light and that was not even a tarmac road. Just mud, mud, gravel and by then I was pregnant and then I had very heavy bike.

[00:14:10] No front tire and if you explain that to the bikers they all tell you how tough it is. I rode like 60 kilometer with no front wheel and managed like really really slowly to

[00:14:24] ride and then I reached the place and then that was another story how I have to find help to fix the bike in the village in Africa. But I had three major breakdown in Africa. That's Mara Liya Zallu.

[00:14:37] Today's bike Adiva, a few years ago she said her first love is bike. But now this equation has changed. Let's learn more about her in her segment which is called scrapbook. Bike Adiva, scrapbook. Who taught you about bikes? I had different training.

[00:15:04] You want to know who trained you on a bike, right? Yeah. Okay, professionally the first person who trained me on a bike was C.S. Santosh. Oh, he's there. Yeah. Lovely. Yeah that was professionally and how I, because that was for the adventure bike,

[00:15:24] I learned how to ride a motorbike was my friend Pehiman, he's an Iranian friend that I have who lives in Spain, which is start training me but that was in my college day to just learn how to kick the bike and do that.

[00:15:41] But the professional training I had was in the big rock with C.S. Santosh. One skill you haven't mastered yet? Oh, I can't sing. Like if I, I always say people laugh at me. I said I sing for the self-defense.

[00:15:58] When I sing nobody can pass up to three kilometers where they can hear my voice. I cannot sing at all. I'm really bad. And my sister, and my, exactly, and my sister is Anayda who used to be a pop star in India and a great singer.

[00:16:18] And I just don't know why I don't even have a little bit of that, you know, I don't have it, I'm not gifted. I'm really bad with singing. Okay. Last time you felt jealous and why? Last time. Oh, today morning when my friend, Ausaf Chakal,

[00:16:40] posted a picture of riding in jungles and woods in Kerala, which I sent a reply back to him with Gali in Hindi. A really bad Gali, I gave it to him. And everybody were sending like, oh wow, such a nice picture.

[00:16:57] But he received a really extreme Gali from me because I said, I'm sitting in London, I don't have a bike. I cannot go out and you send me the picture of riding in middle of the jungle in Kerala. That was the last time I was jealous about something.

[00:17:13] Faster speed you ever ride within the city? You want me to get arrested by the police? No. You know, most of my rides been out of the city because I don't ride in the city. But can I say fastest on the highway instead of the city?

[00:17:35] That's my next question actually. In the city I don't, actually in the city I really follow rules and I don't really break because it's about other people's lives. Outside of the city in the highway, before nafas and after nafas. Before nafas.

[00:17:53] I used to love speed like I used to, I touch 185 on my night through Harley-Davidson Night of the Special but that was my highest speed and that also I couldn't maintain the speed for long. I could reach 180, 185 and then I had to come back to 160, 170

[00:18:15] because light for that speed. When you're going on that speed you have to be able to hold yourself on the bike also. Okay. And after nafas was 140 to 150. Because I always said I used to love speed but now I love nafas more than speed. Yeah. Okay.

[00:18:37] One thing you scared about? That's a nice question because I wish I could say like any other woman, oh a small rat but I don't. Cockroaches. Cockroaches. Imagine I really say that. I'm scared of cockroaches. No, I don't. I don't scared of cockroaches. I don't scared of animals.

[00:19:05] I don't scared of knights and I don't know. Let me just see what I really scared of. I mean in my head, I don't know. I mean I didn't think about it because whatever that I had to be scared of in the world right

[00:19:21] I had no choice except accepting it. Yeah. I lived with cockroaches in the same place. I was in middle of the night alone outside. I was in the wild animal zone.

[00:19:32] I've seen any kind of animal you could imagine but you don't laugh at me if I say what I scared of. Tell me. Human. That seriously? Reality. Yeah. That's reality because the harm which a human can give it to you, no other things in the world can give.

[00:19:56] At the same time I love them but at the same time I scared of them. Who gets scared to sit behind you? Once a punkage bike, my right partner broke down in Bhutan and he had to park the bike

[00:20:13] and sit behind me those curves and really narrow road in Bhutan. I think he still remember like after some time, after some time I didn't even hear punkage breathing and then I came back and I was like you okay she was like alright I was like

[00:20:34] okay okay you're scared. Yeah that was my right partner as a period. So have you ever sat your mom on your bike? Yes I took my mom. So what was her reaction? My mom used to ride motorbike herself. She loves it. She loves it. She loves it.

[00:20:56] Yes my mom used to ride when she was young like when she was 17, 18 years old. Wow. Yeah she really really likes it and but the problem is my mom want to buy her own Harley Davidson and we are saying no. Okay. Okay.

[00:21:13] Because we are saying like no because if she get the buy she gonna set off for the world's ride and we cannot now she has grandchildren to take care of them. Okay. So ashtak aapko kain sare compliments milay hoonge to usmise best compliment concept

[00:21:31] jo aapko hum mesha yad rega. They call me auntie. I know the best compliment. I think when they hear about my world ride they message me and they keep saying how

[00:21:47] my story inspired them to do so many things in their life and I think this is the best compliment they can give it to me. Rule of your life. Never give up. Perfect.

[00:22:00] So shayad ishi liye maral ne Iran mein bhi ladkia bike chalana seekhe isliye ek campaign start kiya. Jante usi campaign ke baar main. In Iran people have no problem of women riding this is a law in government which does not

[00:22:19] allow you to ride motorbike which in the world ride I actually run the campaign and finishing all the seven continents on 64 countries I got permission as a first Iranian world traveler to get to Iran on a superb bike and cross Iran on the motorbike.

[00:22:38] Yeah I heard that story actually. On lugu ne aapka bohaz itse walkum bhi kiya tha naa wahape. Aap bohodacha bohodacha you cannot imagine they give me gifts and they give me like they you know appreciation and they had like a welcome for me in different cities people

[00:22:58] were really good and even government they were really really good to me. I asked them I requested them if this is possible to change the law and permission for women to get license but I be a ways up you know the economy situation bohod parabe in Iran

[00:23:17] and the situation is not that good but definitely after this corona and after all that I want to get back to my campaign and hopefully we will be able to get the permission for women. Lovely.

[00:23:28] Aap apne Iranians ke liye especially Iran ke ladki ho ke liye jo campaign start ki hai to jab aap nuk start ki aapko kaisa support rahe haar aur vaha ke ladki ho se bhi kain saare messages shahid aapko aate hoonge.

[00:23:43] Haan ingo Iran ko uter ladki ho itse bohod open minded hai bohod strong hai and bohod capable hai like they ride the motorbike, they work, they study, they do everything. About biking we have around 300 women bikers in Iran. Okay is it 300 women who ride different bike?

[00:24:09] It's a problem ke uder track and race ko ala haer only riding on a road, public road ala nahi haer. And when I spoke to them when they told me like can you please support us when we ride

[00:24:26] the bike and do this and I said and I can't miss them I'm going to come to Iran after my world ride is done. When I got to Iran they were very very supportive.

[00:24:37] They came, they met me and the Iran federated of car and bikes had a pull up program for me and then I show my presentation videos. I give the speech and they gave me so many different trophies and you know they were

[00:24:58] really really nice and even the women like I never came out I came across any woman who tell me what you're doing and I mean they always been so supportive even Iranian bikers.

[00:25:11] Awesome to ye hai hain hain hain hain hain hain hain aaj ki bike adiva maraal yaazaloo. Jiske saath hain hain hain hain baate yo hi jaari rahi hangi? Wukh ya hai na jhabibi hain hain hain hain rite pe nikalte kain saare special moments,

[00:25:25] kain saari yaadhe hain hain hain hain saath hotiye. Lekin itni saari rides karne ke baat maraal ke liye wo kaan si moment hai jo kafi zada special hai. Best moment, you know when you sit on a motorbike every day is the best moment.

[00:25:41] Like every moment is the best moment because when you sit on a bike it just so good and especially now in this lockdown we just sit at home look at the helmet and we are like oh mehra bike because we cannot really get out.

[00:25:56] But my best moments on a motorbike you cannot believe it is when we stop on a daba you have those kata groti then the fresh yellow dal and then you have uesaf gara masala chai oh my god like you don't want anything else.

[00:26:16] Like many people dream of having some food in some luxurious places in the world. My dream is kanduri roti, yellow dal and masala chai and not in the restaurant. I have one in a daba when you're sitting when you reach and you ride 500 kilometers

[00:26:37] you are so tired you stop to get on the daba and then they have those bed then you sit on the bed you have your food and thoracic you just lay down and then half an hour later you sit on the bike again.

[00:26:51] Those moments for me are the best moments when I go for a ride and of course when I ride with my girls lady riders of India they are really fun girls.

[00:27:02] Bohot, Bohot, Achaal Erki all of them and this is so much fun because there are like 10 of us ride together when we reach, when we stop, when we remove the helmet and there are like Bohot strong ladies in the bike

[00:27:17] and then this is really really nice riding with them. I always enjoy riding with my friends who are guys as well but when you ride with the women it's totally a different feeling. Yeah true.

[00:27:28] But when you told me about tandoori roti, dal, chai and that too on the daba I felt like you are a real Indian. Yes, I am a real Indian. I'm telling you sometimes I am more Indian my rider friends

[00:27:45] like the places I go I stop and I eat those people are like we cannot do that as Indian and even in India in my office the places I've been to nobody else been to

[00:27:58] like I've been in so many places in India which Merakali, Meradus, Meraphrens, Indian friends they've never been there. Now I am 70% Indian, 30% Pirangay. But you need to allow me back. 50-50 is also 70. After the daba I am 70-30. Amazing.

[00:28:25] So another amazing thing that you have done is ride to be one. Your world. So how did you start? And this is a tough decision because you were going to ride alone.

[00:28:41] You know my dream traveling the world and by the way I started biking just added to my dream and I was working as head of the retail and marketing for Panchashil reality which is a very good job.

[00:28:59] Like 12 years and I have to decide to leave that and get on a bike and go for the world ride. My whole planning, 6 months, I spent 6 months to do everything and make sure that everything is ok because it's been a long process.

[00:29:21] We stopped bike ready, we got visa and permission. But for me it was very different. When I started, I started with Pankaj Therivedi, my right partner who is a professional photographer and documentary maker but unfortunately because he got unwell on the way, there is back problem, neck problem

[00:29:48] because it's very difficult like this long ride. He quit and he didn't come and I was very worried because now I have to continue everything alone and I've done everything and then from there I was solo and imagine no backup, no team.

[00:30:09] I had a tent in my motorbike, I was cooking for myself and everything I've done it myself like Pura Akhlet like from visa to borders crossing, to shipping the bike, to riding but it was a very good experience.

[00:30:29] Like if you ask me, you do it again, I said 100% It took me one and a half years, total kilometer, 110,000 kilometers and me Pura continent suffered like Pura 7 continent which in Asia and Middle East, a second rider who done the ride

[00:30:56] even there is no other guy. This one makes me so happy. There is no other guy. There is no other guy, only one person. There are people who are from Iran. There is also Indian. There is also Indian. There is half half. 50% Indian, 50% Iranian.

[00:31:20] Yeah you know because I've done everything in a one round trip and because there are other bikers from India they've gone for separate trip like they went for 20 countries they came back, again they gone, again they came back

[00:31:35] but for me I left, I finished the whole ride and I came back and in the world, the only rider who carried the ride pregnant Yeah I know, I've heard so. So guys this amazing story is from Maral Yazzarluki which is today's bike adiva.

[00:32:00] After listening Maral's world tour story, maybe someone comes to mind that we should go on a ride if we have to do a ride planning then what is the way to do it? Do you know Maral? You know I started with the company that I work

[00:32:18] I worked with them for 12 years before I go for a world ride Okay. And when you wanted to do the saving and always stop when it's about money and it's about everything you need to plan it long, long before you actually do such a ride like this

[00:32:36] For the first six months of the ride I had a sponsor a company that I work for they had the magazine and which I was giving them photos and I was giving them content and I was giving them all the things that they needed

[00:32:51] but after that I had to survive with the money that I had and the money that I earned But if you want to do something like that, but you know one thing people think of course if you want to go on a ride to stay in the hotel

[00:33:04] and have an agent to get your visa it's going to become very expensive but I always tell people I said if you want to ride motorbike you can manage it with the minimum cost like you can earn money for a couple of years do the saving

[00:33:24] You don't need to go and finish the world in one go I've worked many years for it If you work a couple of years just go from India to Thailand It's just going to take you one week to reach, 10 days to reach

[00:33:36] Just a bit you know come come shuru kardio Like you just go one country, two countries, three countries and you do that and then you learn because art of traveling on a motorbike as an adventure is just a huge thing

[00:33:51] You need to have art, you need to know how to manage it where you put your tent, how to fix your bike what all you eat and what all you do to save money visa or pay sapper management is very important

[00:34:09] and when the people don't know about it they just intend to lose so much of money but I was traveling before my world ride I've been on a, I traveled 67 countries on a backpack before I go on a motorbike for the world ride

[00:34:26] I was traveling a lot before I get on a bike She is Maraal Yazalu Today's bike Adiva whose journey is very inspiring and as she said if you have seen a dream then to fulfill it you never ever give up

[00:34:46] with this we meet soon in our show Biker Divas for now, goodbye and take care