Resurrection

Think of premium bikes in the country and the first name that conjures up is the Hero Honda Karizma, and why not? The Karizma broke cover in 2003 and immediately conquered the premium bike segment with its gorgeous looks and a smooth but potent 223cc mill. In spite of being expensive, it sold like hot cakes. Competition revved up and the larger-engined Bajaj Pulsars (read P220 and P200) crept in its territory, offering similar performance, distinctive looks and better value for money. By the time the Yamaha R15 came, the Karizma had lost all its sheen - its ‘R’ suffix and the red wheels couldn’t keep up with what the competition had to offer.

The Karizma's long-overdue update comes finally in the form of the ZMR and fans of the ‘Zma won’t be disappointed. Thankfully, it’s not a sticker job and the new styling exercise seems to have started on a clean sheet of paper. Its full fairing is a sportier take on the Karizma’s half-naked appeal and is heavily inspired by international design trends. The huge headlamp cluster smells of older Suzuki GSX-Rs while the dummy air intakes below resemble the latest Honda Fireblade. Overlapping surfaces on the side fairing save it from looking slab-sided and reveal just a bit of the proven engine now finished in a shade of gold.  The big 'ZMR' decals can be easily mistaken for the Hayabusa kanji and the absence of a kickstarter is very obvious.

The rear has been completely redesigned is a bit like CBZ Xtreme's, although sleeker. The tail lamp gets a pentagonal arrangement of LEDs and is flanked by clear lens blinkers. The Xtreme-like split grabrail is quite convenient for pillions to grab as well as strapping on some serious luggage.

The Karizma ZMR comes properly kitted up too. So, in comes full digital instrumentation, with a roundLCD bar central tachometer and big readouts for speedo and odo/tripmeter on either side. It also features an interesting dual colour illumination - the tacho is lit in white while the rest get an orange backlight. There is also a ridiculously long scrolling welcome message when you start the ignition. The regular tell tale affair is nestled on top and there is a clock and an instantaneous mileage indicator (as on Glamour Fi) on board too. The switchgear remains the same and, in true Hero Honda fashion, there is no engine kill switch. Another change is gas-charged shock absorbers with bright red springs at the rear. The ZMR also sports a disc brake at the rear.