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The most awaited car and bike biennial event turned out to be bigger, better and bolder this year.
With 65 automobile manufacturers unveiling over 100 new vehicles, the auto show with the theme ‘Mobility for All’ struck the right chord with the audience.
Bollywood stars and cricketers added to the glamour of the show while auto enthusiasts thronged the venue to catch a glimpse of their dream cars and bikes.
The auto extravaganza reached out to the masses as people from all ages and backgrounds could buy a ticket for the price of a movie show and spend time with the costliest and cheapest cars, bikes, buses and trucks!
Text: Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com; Photographs: Hitesh Harisinghani and Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com
The 2016 Auto Expo's venue was shifted to the Indian Exposition Mart, 41 kms away in greater Noida from its usual venue at New Delhi's Pragati Maidan.
It took almost 3 hours for auto enthusiasts to travel from Delhi to Noida.
But this did not dampen the spirit of car lovers, who even took the public transport to reach the auto paradise and see their dream machines in the flesh.
Here is a wrap-up of all the excitement and action at the 2016 Auto Expo.
For the first time, in the recent times, the Auto Expo seemed to be very well managed.
Parking areas were away from the venue. And local busses were engaged to ferry the visitors till the venue gates for people who drove to Greater Noida.
There were buses, which ferried them to the venue from the metro station as well, which was 27 kms away, free of cost.
It was easy to cover long distances between the exhibits and the entrance gates as they provided electric carts and life-sized mini-trains to all.
Food carts and beverages were set up all around the Expo with a central payment system, where one had to purchase a prepaid card for multiple amounts as needed.
The counters for these prepaid cards could have been managed better as people had to stand in long queues to fill up their cards every time they needed to but it’s a good start.
Well maintained and accessible washrooms was a welcome change.
And then the main exhibits caught all the attention...The models - both gorgeous cars and women obliged for photo shoots.
While some people pushed their way, others made polite requests for a photo opportunity.
Some visitors made the models step aside!
And fathers literally pulled the women models to pose with their sons or daughters.
At times, the situation was scary for models. But their courteous manners kept unmanageable situations at bay.
Some high-end cars were cordoned off. But that was to keep them safe from the crowd. Whenever a visitor or even kids requested the carmakers to have a close look, they obliged.
There were newly-married couples too taking part in the excitement.
Some families came with toddlers to see their dream vehicles. Seen here are Kangana and Vineet Mittal with their daughter. All Hyundai fans from Delhi have decided their next car will be from the same automaker.
There were car safety movie screenings set up at makeshift theatre halls. Outside, kids could pose with cartoon characters of cars.
Families could fulfill their dreams of becoming rockstars and get themselves clicked in action.
For off road enthusiasts, JK tyres had set up an off roading track where anyone could sit in one of their cars and experience the off-roading capabilities of its tyres.
And take home a memorable picture with models at the end of the ride.
Seen in the previous pictures with the models is Hitesh Harisinghani who took a ride in the Off road track and shot the above video too.
There was a dirt track off road display too. But this was done by professionals only for the visitors to watch.
For vintage lovers, a separate pavilion was set up along with the accessories stalls by Heritage Motoring Club of India but this area seemed quite neglected.
The attractive Bollywood pavilion had 6 vehicles from 6 Bollywood films.
The wonder car Tarzan from Dilip Chhabria, who kept himself away from the Expo this year, was greatly missed here.
There were racing cars thronged by people.
The live shows by different car makers kept the momentum going.
A very rare display was Datsun's battered up car from 1964, which had won races and added to the company’s glory.
This car was displayed without any revamp.
The Tata Safari, Tata's premiere SUV was nowhere in sight at the Tata Pavilion.
It was found at the offroading area on display with its add-on customisation camping packages.
The most unpopular event at the Expo was the inauguration on the second day of the Auto Expo by the Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari.
It just seemed to be a political showcase platform, attended mostly by the media.
And media thronged the places where the car launches had celebrities.
The presence of Bollywood stars added more sheen to the mean machines!