Female daredevils rev up for Everest Base Camp conquest

This Women’s Day, a group of ten women motorcyclists is preparing to ride to one of the highest terrains a motorcyclist can reach. Their destination is Everest Base Camp, a journey across India, Nepal and Tibet that could mark India’s first all-women motorcycle expedition to the mountain. In many ways, the ride reflects a larger shift. Women today are claiming apne hisse ki sadak, taking the road less travelled, and sometimes riding it all the way to the roof of the world.

How one woman’s call sparked a movement of women riders
Recalling how the idea began, Amit Saini, founder of Motolyf, a Gurugram-based motorcycle rental and training initiative for women, says the turning point came nearly seven years ago. “A woman once called to rent a motorcycle and asked if we could provide a rider. I asked why she didn’t learn to ride herself. She then asked if there were schools where women could learn riding. That question stayed with me and eventually led to the idea of starting a training programme,” he says.
What began as a small training initiative soon grew into a community of women riders taking part in long-distance tours.”Till now more than 5,000 women from across the country have been trained. Once women learn to ride, there is a sense of liberation, and many then want to go on journeys and experience the road themselves, so that’s when we started curating special bike expeditions,” he says.
The years of watching women learn to ride have quietly changed Amit. “As a man, my perception of women has completely changed. Every Saturday, new women walk in to learn to bike. It’s a new world of women,” he says. During a vision-training exercise where riders are asked to look far ahead, a homemaker once told him, “Sir, hamesha se aurton ko neeche dekhne ko kaha jata hai. Ab achanak aankh utha ke chalne ko keh diya, we need time to learn.”

Everest ride is about pushing my limits
For Jimmi Mangat, 43, Director, Business Excellence at a marketing consultancy firm, and one of the ladies set to ride to the EBC, riding gradually turned into a deeply personal practice. “Over time, motorcycling became more than a hobby. It became a form of meditation, a way to feel grounded and free at the same time. During the pandemic, I enrolled in a four-day training programme where I found not just a skill but also a community. Being part of this all-women expedition means empowerment, lifting each other, pushing past fears and taking on new challenges with confidence. For me, the Everest ride is about pushing my limits physically, mentally and emotionally, and becoming the best version of myself through the journey,” she says.
For Meenakshi Anand, 48, a corporate trainer who has led rides through Rezang La, Khardung La and Umling La, motorcycling has been a lifelong love. “My first experience of riding a bike came through my father when I was 13. Women were given bikes sparingly, more as a feel than a full hold. I wanted to break that. Later, when I began training, my husband gifted me my first bike. Kaun kehta hai sirf ladkon ka pehla pyaar bike hota hai? Even girls can fall in love with a bike. There are many stereotypes surrounding women riders. I am 5 feet tall, and people often told me I wouldn’t be able to handle the weight of a bike. Now I am claiming apne hisse ki sadak. To be part of the Everest expedition is adding another milestone to my journey. I look forward to challenging myself all over again,” she says.

Preparing for the ultimate mountain ride
The upcoming ride to Mount Everest Base Camp is expected to be the most challenging expedition undertaken by the group so far, says Amit Saini. “In 2025 alone, the women riders covered more than 11,000 kilometres, travelling across Ladakh, Umling La near the China border, and the country’s northern and southern frontiers, including Kanyakumari and areas close to the Pakistan border. We wanted to attempt something even more ambitious next, and that’s how the idea of riding to Mount Everest Base Camp emerged,” he says.
Planned for May 2026, the expedition will see around ten women riders travel over 16 days. “The journey will begin in Gurgaon, with the first halt in Kathmandu. From there, the riders will cross into Tibet through the Gyirong Port border crossing, halt in Lhasa to acclimatise, and finally ride to Rongbuk Monastery at the foot of Everest Base Camp,” he explains. But riding at such heights brings its own set of challenges. “Motorcycling in such regions is always uncertain. During one of our rides in the Northeast, the group rode continuously in the rain for three days. There are sanitation challenges and limited facilities, but the riders take it as part of the journey,” adds Saini, who will be leading the expedition.

Tulisen Gupta, 41, began riding during her college days when she secretly rode bikes despite her parents’ disapproval. “I used to sneak rides since my college days, away from my parents. Bike riding is no longer a hobby for me; I have been professionally riding for the past five years now. The sound of the engine is my heartbeat. Speed is something that pushes me toward a sense of freedom. Motorcycling to Everest will be a difficult ride, but for me, it is about breaking the stereotype of women being soft and timid. Life itself is a tough journey, and women have always proven they are strong enough to face it,” she says.

Sana Sheikh, 29, a marketing professional based in Gurugram, is all set to ride to the roof of the world. “Everest still feels impossible to me, but I keep asking myself if my body is fit enough to undertake it, but then the fear is also what makes it exciting. I used to be scared of bikes but at a friend’s suggestion I took up riding classes. The moment I felt the throttle, I knew I wanted to explore this. My first long ride to Ladakh proved deeply emotional. I am the first woman motorcyclist in seven generations of my family on both sides. Coming from a place where girls can never be imagined on a bike, it feels more empowering to take the lead,” she says.
-Amina Ashraf