Veteran biker Navroze Contractor passes away at 80 in bike accident

Veteran motorcyclist Navroze Contractor has been tragically killed in a motorcycle accident at age 80. Contractor was an avid biker as well as a multi award-winning cinematographer and photographer. Among his works are the documentary film Bharat Parikrama about his circumnavigation of India on his motorcycle in 2005. He also rode from India to England three times in the 1960s and undertook a journey to the Himalayas in 1974, aboard his 1956 BSA Goldstar.

A multi-talented man with a long and diverse career, Contractor photographed Grand Prix races in Europe in the 1960s and 1970s, and wrote a book, The Dreams of the Dragon’s Children, about his filmmaking experiences in China in 1984. A long-time jazz aficionado, his photographs of jazz musicians are part of the Smithsonian Museum in Washington DC, while his pictures of artist Bhupen Khakhar are part of the collection at the Tate Modern in London.

Contractor was reportedly aboard his Kawasaki Z650 returning to his residence in Bengaluru after a Sunday ride when he was allegedly struck by another motorcycle going the wrong way. He was transported to a hospital in Denkanikottai, Tamil Nadu, where he succumbed to his injuries.

He was universally admired and loved by the motorcycling community and he often spoke about his lifelong experiences at motorcycle events and festivals. Autocar India sends its heartfelt condolences to Mr Contractor’s family, and mourns the loss of an icon in the Indian motorcycling scene.