Exclusive! World Bicycle Day: Harshvardhan Rane on racing to school on a red bicycle to cruising Mumbai’s streets on a cycle gifted by John Abraham

Cycling has been a constant in Harshvardhan Rane’s life, from racing to school on a red bicycle as a child to navigating Mumbai’s busy streets today. On World Bicycle Day, the actor marked the occasion with an exclusive shoot for Bombay Times at the Worli Promenade cycling track, arriving at 6.30 am on a road bike gifted to him by John Abraham. Dressed in shorts and a tank top, he spoke about the joy, freedom and life lessons he has found on two wheels.

He recalls, “As a child, I had a red cycle. That was my first transportation capsule. I felt like I was flying. I used to race to school and once a bus driver actually caught me by my ears, brought me home and complained to my father.”

A sweet cycling memory

Harshvardhan also has a sweet cycling story from his school days. “There was a girl I liked, and she liked me too. One day, she wasn’t feeling well, so I offered to drop her home on my cycle. Sitting behind made it difficult to balance, so we awkwardly decided that she would sit on the front bar instead. I think that was the closest I ever got to her,” he says with a smile.



Years later, cycling returned to Harshvardhan’s life in a much bigger way. Today, he owns both a mountain bike and a road bike, and swears by the sport as one of the best forms of fitness. “You are working your muscles, but not hurting your joints. Cycling makes you experience the environment more than walking or running because you cover more distance. Cycle pe breeze bahut achchi lagti hai,” he says.

‘Cycling is one of the best ways to cut through Mumbai traffic’
The actor believes cycling is a smart way to beat Mumbai traffic. He shares, “I used to travel from Andheri to Bandra every day for my fitness training, and it would take me 55 minutes. Then I started cycling, and the journey was reduced to 22 minutes. Even though there aren’t dedicated cycle lanes everywhere, once you start, you figure it out. If you want to reach your destination faster, cycling is one of the best ways to cut through Mumbai traffic.”
Harshvardhan is particularly excited about Mumbai’s growing cycling infrastructure and believes spaces like the Worli Promenade can transform how the city approaches fitness.“I like this dedicated cycling track. It’s nice to see so many enthusiastic cyclists at this hour. I believe we should focus on what we can do rather than complain. Blaming has never been in my nature.”

Life lessons learnt
Perhaps the most insightful lesson Harshvardhan has taken from cycling comes from the gears themselves. The Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat actor says, “Cycling has taught me how to navigate life. If you use your gears wisely, the ride becomes easier. A bigger gear helps you move with less effort, while a smaller gear helps you pick up speed. Easy or fast — that’s your choice. I relate that to life. The distance is fixed and your strength is limited, but if you use your virtues like gears, life can become easier or faster, depending on where you are in your journey.”



A special gift
Talking about a special gift that he got from John Abraham with whom he will be seen in Force 3, Harshvardhan says, “I used to cycle every day to my fitness trainer Vinod Channa sir’s gym when John Abraham sir noticed it. One day, he said, ‘Harsh, you are the right person for this,’ and gifted me his personal road bike. That was a special gift.”