Mahendra Singh Dhoni
MS Dhoni Launches First Edition of Bike Festival in IndiaVarinder Chawla

Mahendra Singh Dhoni launched the first edition of Southeast Asia's largest bike festival the 'Bike Festival of India' (BFI) on 10 January in Mumbai.

The bike festival will serve as a remarkable stage for biking aficionados to come together and be a part of this first-of-its-kind biking endeavor in India.

While adventure is the main feature of BFI, the most remarkable characteristic is that it emphasizes on the importance of safe biking.

BFI will bring together over 120 biking communities from across the country to participate in a series of events as part of the festival. The finale of the event will take place in October at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) in Greater Noida.

Dhoni, who is also a bike enthusiast, during the launch of festival, said that he was excited to be a part of the event.

"Biking for me is a passion, which is why I am excited to be part of this initiative that not only is an adventure in its form but also promotes safe biking. BFI will be an annual platform for the biking community to meet, interact and share adventures together," said Dhoni.

"Meeting with the presidents of various biking communities from all over India has been enlightening and I look forward to joining them sometime on the track," he added.

BFI will start with a cross-country cycle ride in the first quarter of 2014, mapping every single state in the nation. This will be no less than a month long ride, which is likely to place India in the Guinness World Records. This will be followed by a racing championship at Buddh International Circuit in March.

From that point, the BFI will have a Dirt Bike Championship and a Rally Championship. The festival will feature a series of competitions such as stunt riding, wheelies, burnouts, stoppies and group rides. In addition, there will also be several off track competitions such as weight lifting, arm wrestling, bench press, pushups and food festivals. Exhibitions of various bikes and bike accessories will also be a significant part of the festival.