Indian Racing Festival powered by JK Tyre: A spectacle of motorsport in North-East India

The motorsport scene in India is still a relatively nascent one, often centred around the metro cities. However, the sport is slowly and steadily gaining popularity in India thanks to more race tracks coming up across the country and a growing tribe of enthusiasts. And now, JK Tyre has also taken a stab at increasing the awareness about the sport in India by organising the JK Tyre powered Indian Racing Festival in North-East India, which would tour the cities of Kohima, Aizawl, Shillong, Guwahati and Gangtok. The Indian Racing Festival kicked off on April 12 at Kohima, and it would culminate on April 22 in the city of Gangtok. We had an opportunity to witness the third leg of the Indian Racing Festival which took place in the city of Shillong, Meghalaya on April 19.

The Shillong leg of the Indian Racing Festival was presented by the Meghalaya Motorsports Society in collaboration with the Assam Rifles Laitkor, the latter also being the venue for the Indian Racing Festival. Lieutenant General Vikas Lakhera, AVSM, SM, Director General, Assam Rifles was the chief guest for the event. The lineup for the Indian Racing Festival included machines such as Sanam Sekhon’s Lexus GS300 drift car and Ashwin Singh Takiar’s drift-spec BMW 3 Series, stunt bikes, go-karts, Formula 4 cars, cafe racers and JK Tyre’s posse of Maruti Suzuki Balenos which have been souped-up for stunting. Hari Singh, head of operations at JK Tyre Motorsport said, “The whole idea is to expose the North-East to what is happening in the national racing scene. We have the Indian Formula 4 car which is a world-class car. It is raced by all the youngsters. These are world-class cars, they are raced in Asia and Europe as well. It is a great opportunity for the people of Meghalaya, of Shillong to see what racing is all about.”

One of the Formula 4 cars being prepped at the Indian Racing Festival

The festivities kicked off with the Formula 4 cars zooming off on fast laps around the tight circuit that was set up at the Assam Rifles Laitkor. The Formula 4 cars were followed in quick session by the young karting prodigies Rivaan Dev Preetham and Rehan Khan taking to the track. Amping up the adrenaline were the stunt bikers with their purpose-made machines, and as they laid down copious amounts of tyre marks on the tarmac while doing burnouts and slides, the crowds of enthusiasts which gathered to attend the event was more than elated.

Lucky participants even had the opportunity to have a taxi ride in these stunt Balenos

But this show of enthusiasm was nothing compared to the excitement that the crowds had on display when the JK Tyre stunt Balenos rolled out. With utmost precision, the drivers behind the wheel of these Balenos (which included Hari Singh himself) performed handbrake turns and J-turns, while also demonstrating their party trick – balancing the Balenos on just two tyres as they drove along! Lucky participants even had the opportunity to have a taxi ride in these stunt Balenos, and it must have been an unforgettable experience.

Ashwin Singh Takiar's drift-spec BMW 3 Series at the Indian Racing Festiva;

As the afternoon gave way to evening, the stunt Balenos gave way to the Lexus and BMW drift machines which had the crowds absolutely hooked as they went sideways in style. “The crowd today was mad! The only problem we had was the rain, which by God’s grace went away. We thought we would have a bad day but it was nice and bright, and we had a super time!” said Sanam Sekhon, excitedly. The wheelman skills of Sekhon and Ashwin Singh Takiar were undoubtedly sublime, and they proceeded to bonfire the rear tyres off their drift cars, until the cafe racers from Shillong took over and performed some insane burnouts with their bikes. The festivities culminated in a mixture of tyre smoke and firecrackers as the sun went down, and it was safe to say that the JK Tyre powered Indian Racing Festival had certainly been a hit with the crowds in Shillong.

Phoebe Dale Nongrum is the chairperson of the Meghalaya Motorsports Society and the first female Formula 4 driver from the North-East

A big part of bringing this event to life was down to the efforts of the Meghalaya Motorsport Society, which ensured the event went off safely, without a hitch. Earlier this year, the Meghalaya Motorsport Society held its first-ever national motorsport event in the form of the Speed Fest – Time Attack 2025, and it now has another feather in its cap with the Indian Racing Festival. Speaking about the event, Phoebe Dale Nongrum, chairperson of the Meghalaya Motorsports Society and the first female Formula 4 driver from the North-East said, “It was amazing! I would like to thank JK (Tyre) for coming all the way and doing this show with us and collaborating with Meghalaya Motorsports (Society). I would like to thank our government and the DG (Director General) of Assam Rifles for giving us this space to do the event.” She added that, “The crowd turnout was way more than we expected but I am so happy that people showed up, and I think that this is one of the most amazing shows that has ever happened in Shillong by JK Tyre.”

The JK Tyre powered Indian Racing Festival has only proven that there is no dearth of motorsport enthusiasts even in the far-flung corners of our country, and we strongly hope that more of such motorsport spectacles keep taking place across the country – not only to enthuse the enthusiasts but also to raise greater awareness about the sport, which will help encourage more Indians to ultimately take part in it.