Royal Enfield marks 125 years with an animated ode to its legacy

Royal Enfield just dropped something that feels like a warm hug for every rider who’s ever kicked a crank, revved up a long stretch of road, or simply admired a Bullet thumping past. 

The brand is celebrating 125 years in 2025, marking its journey since the launch of its first motorcycle in 1901 in Redditch, UK—a history that began even earlier with bicycles and rifle components. This milestone is being commemorated in style with a two-minute animated film titled “125 years on, we’re still Made Like a Gun.” 

The video is a playful, heartfelt ride through Enfield’s story: tracing its path from manufacturing the earliest motorcycles in 1901, weaving through the war years and global expansion, crossing India’s rugged terrains, and peeking into a future where electric motorcycles are ready to join the lineup.

What makes the animation stand out is its tone — warm, confident, and almost nostalgic — showing that Royal Enfield’s 125th year is more than a number. It feels like an epic tale being retold, not to boast, but to celebrate a legacy that means something real to riders across generations.

True to form, the video also revisits the roots of Enfield’s iconic tagline. “Made Like a Gun” wasn’t born out of marketing cleverness alone; it comes from the brand’s historical ties to the Royal Small Arms Factory in Enfield, London, and was originally associated with the brands' bicycles before motorcycles.

Over time, the line has become part of its identity, symbolising precision, power and craftsmanship – the kind you associate with a machine built to last.

The journey in the film also tips its helmet to Enfield’s Indian chapter, which began with demand and assembly work starting in 1952, culminating in the official partnership with Madras Motors to form Enfield India and establish production in Madras (now Chennai) in 1955. That partnership not only kept the Bullet model alive after the UK operations faded but also transformed it into an icon of Indian roads.

And while the video reminisces about the past, Royal Enfield is clearly roaring into the future. To commemorate its 125-year milestone, the company showcased a refreshed lineup at EICMA 2025 – including the new Bullet 650, Classic 650 125th Anniversary Edition, Himalayan Mana Black variant, and several concept EVs such as the Electric Himalayan Testbed and Flying Flea city+ electric scrambler – signalling that while the soul of the brand remains classic, its direction is anything but stuck in time. 

With new machines rolling out and a legacy polished for the next century, Royal Enfield isn’t just celebrating where it’s been. It’s gearing up, quite literally, for what’s next.