The dream ride

Bollywood movie, Andaz Apna Apna, was released in 1994. Of comic genre, and a multistarrer, it attained cult status to be remade in many regional languages. Directed by Rajkumar Santoshi, the movie evolved around a plot with ‘Amar’ and ‘Prem’ played by Aamir Khan and Salman Khan in pursuit of a rich heiress Raveena Bajaj (played by Raveena Tandon). Day dreamers, Amar and Prem, read in a tabloid that the rich heiress is returning to India from London. She would be staying with her rich businessman father (played by Paresh Rawal) at Ooty. The two, not having met ever, strike upon the idea of marrying the rich heiress and end their woes. Amar sells his father’s salon; Prem sells his ancestral home. The two board a Ashok Leyland Viking tourist bus to get to Ooty. Much drama unveils on the bus as the two meet and strike a conversation. By manufacturing stories of being filthy rich, the two strike a friendship. It is during the bus journey that Prem reveals to Amar the details of the mission he is on. Their friendship sours. The rest as they say is history.

Playing a cameo role, the Viking bus makes a lasting first impression. It underlines the role played by buses in the transportation of people in India. The Viking in the movie is a bus that sports a Karnataka registration. Its body with a generous sprinkling of chrome at front, is built by Azad Coach Builders. Introduced in 1976, the Viking proved to be an important bus platform for Ashok Leyland. It was subjected to many face lifts over its lifespan, and found use as a city bus, and as an inter-city coach too. Preferred by State Transport Undertakings (STUs) and private operators alike, the Viking boasted of a ladder type chassis. If the twin-beam head lamps were a typical feature of many buses built on the Viking platform, a generous sprinkling of chrome was the order of the day. The available wheelbase was 3912 mm, 4902 mm, 5334 mm and 5639 mm. Flaunting a longer front overhang over the Ashok Leyland Ceetah bus platform, the Viking, also a frontengine bus platform, has been one of the long standing products to come out of Ashok Leyland ever. The earlier Vikings were equipped with Ashok Leyland 6.5-litre (AL 370), 110PS engine. The later Vikings were equipped by Hino H-series engines and ZF transmission. The mechanically governed H Series 6ETI3K turbocharged intercooled diesel engine developed 160 hp in BSIII guise. The HA135LT3 engine developed 183 hp and a maximum torque of 550 Nm. Transmission on earlier Viking was a five-speed and a four-speed GB unit. The latter Vikings were equipped with a sixspeed synchromesh unit. With an approximate GVW of 15-tonne, the suspension of the Viking was made up of shackle leaf spring and shock absorbers at the front and rear. The maximum speed the bus could attain was 80 kmph. The USP of Viking was that it could carry 15 per cent more passengers over a conventional bus, like the Ashok Leyland Comet, could carry. The Viking could seat up to 61 passengers.