India is one of the only two countries where Harley-Davidson has set up an assembly plant, the other being Brazil. The company has recognised India as an emerging market and is targeting large-scale expansion here.

By setting up the plant in Haryana, Harley has localised production and has made the bikes more accessible to the buyers.

Since it entered the Indian market in 2009, Harley-Davidson has sold around 2,000 bikes in the country. Asia and Latin America combined contribute to around 14 per cent of the total sales for the company worldwide.

However, all is not well for the brand.

Only the Sportster and Dyna models are imported as completely knocked down kits, and are assembled at the Haryana plant; other models are imported as completely built units. The price skyrockets after import tax, with the bikes ranging from Rs 5.81 lakh to Rs 40 lakh, which clearly puts them out of the reach of most youngsters.

The brand thus faces very stiff competition from other popular brands such as Kawasaki, BMW and Hyosung. The entry level bikes such as Kawasaki Ninja and Hyosung and Honda are placed at around Rs 3 lakh, which attracts youngsters, taking a large chunk of the market away from Harley. Royal Enfield, too, has continued to be a worthy opponent in the heavy bike category.

Realising the potential of the market, and to counter the competition, the company is set to roll out a new bike next year. It is rumoured to be a smaller 500 cc version of Sportster, which would be priced at around Rs 3 lakh.

(Dhruba studied physics at Xavier's, Kolkata, and Gaurav did English Literature at Delhi University. Both now study at the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai.)

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