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| "Even
if I wasn't Audi's ambassador, I would still talk good about
is cars." |
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Former Indian
cricketer Ravi Shastri has been driving his Audi 100 for 16 years now. Surprisingly,
it still manages to bowl him over. By Girish Karkera.
The term ‘prized-possession’ was probably coined for this. Yep,
this Audi 100 is the same ‘Champion of Champions’ car that former
cricketer and now commentator Ravi Shastri won for being on top, Down Under
back in 1985.
“It was an unbelievable feeling,” notes Ravi while recollecting
the day, one of the most memorable moments etched in gold in his cricketing
career. A lucky coincidence that we interviewed him on March 9, a day before
his Audi’s 16th anniversary.
From driving a second-hand Premier Padmini to sailing in an Audi, it was
a big jump. Not that Ravi minded it.
“Initially I was overly possessive about it,” admits Ravi. “I
was always watching her with eagle eyes just to make sure no one touched
her.” And this utmost care has paid off. The car is pretty scratch-free
and the paint looks as good as new. Or, maybe that’s stretching it
a bit too far. Maybe not new, but definitely not 16 years old!
Love it or leave it. No matter how badly we play, or the
recent betting scam, cricket is just too big in India. Even German car giant
Audi realised this. The story goes that Audi conducted a survey in India
to study the general public’s brand awareness of the marque, and wherever
it went, Audi was recognised as the car Ravi Shastri won. Seeing the kind
of mileage that Ravi generated, Audi saw sense in having an association
with the ace all-rounder. So in 1996, just ahead of the India-Australia
World Cup match in Mumbai, Audi chose Ravi to be its brand ambassador.
Ravi saw sense in it too. “Even if I wasn’t associated with Audi,
I would still talk good about Audis. Of course, I should know better having
driven one around for so long. The car has never disappointed me. Okay,
maybe spares are a bit expensive but on the brighter side, your visits to
the mechanic for the same are amazingly few.” In that aspect Ravi has
never had a problem. Even though Audi does not have an Indian arm, Mumbai-based
Ashiya Motors has looked after his car’s needs. And looked after well.
In fact it’s not just the 100 CD they look after because there’s
a new Audi in Ravi’s life - a brand new A4, courtesy Audi promotions.
“Audi is beginning to cater to the requirements of car lovers in this
part of the continent,” notes Ravi. “My 100 was directed more
at the Australian and European markets and their kind of conditions. The
classic example being its air con, which had to be upgraded for India.
The new A4 that one could get here in India has been designed to make it
suitable to our conditions. Classic example, again, being the fantastic
air con.“In that aspect the A6 is one step ahead. It’s bigger
in terms of size but handles quite well, performance is fantastic and looks
great too. Actually, I would have preferred it to an A4 but then one has
to be practical. The car would have been too big to drive in Mumbai’s
sticky traffic,” says Ravi, who prefers to drive around himself rather
than be chauffeur-driven.
The car that can beat the A6 is, of course, the A8. It’s the closest
he’s come to achieving ‘driving nirvana’. Ravi says the car
is “simply superb” - he drove it during the 1999 World Cup, the
day India beat Pakistan in the league match. “That made it all the
more enjoyable.”
So, that’s his dream car, right? “Nope. I think it will be the
Audi TT Sports Coupe.”
It had been some days since the 100 CD had been driven. Yet the car stirred
to life at the first turn of the ignition, as Ravi parked it the way our
photographer wanted him to. A couple of clicks later, it was pack-up time
and he duly started to reverse MFA 1 into the parking lot. But just as we
were about to drive out, the famous Audi rolled out in front of us.
“I think I’ll take it for a spin,” said Ravi as he rolled
up the window glass and sped into the distance. True love, as they say,
never dies . . .
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April 2001