Thar Fest Goa 2025: A petrolhead’s paradise!

The beauty of driving a Mahindra Thar is that it amplifies the adventurous streak within you. Ever since we got our hands on the current-gen Thar at this magazine, it has constantly been pressed into action for some epic stories. We took it for dune bashing in the desert with which it shares its name, the Mahindra Adventure Off-road Academy in Igatpuri, we used it on record-setting drives, exploring trails around our base in Pune, and all of this was in addition to commuting in the city, support car duties on shoots and countless expressway runs between Mumbai and Pune. Any other car would’ve handled the latter part of those duties, but with the Thar, you really felt like heading out and exploring the outdoors. Heading on adventures with the Thar also helped us meet like-minded enthusiasts, and embodying this same spirit was the Thar Fest.

The Thar Fest was an event that celebrated the community present around the Mahindra Thar and Mahindra SUVs

The Thar Fest was an event that celebrated the community present around the Mahindra Thar and Mahindra SUVs, and the inaugural edition of the event was held in Goa from November 7 to November 9. We spent our weekend at the Thar Fest in Nagalli Hills, Goa, and our first port of call was the experience zone where enthusiasts could check out the Thar’s off-road abilities in an off-road course.

Prad4x4 had a stall at the Thar Fest, complete with a display of the various accessories that you can bolt on to your Thar, Scorpio-N or the Thar Roxx

The Thar and its siblings from the Mahindra SUV range have always been capable off-roaders, but the great thing about these SUVs is that there is plenty of aftermarket support to further improve their abilities. Prad4x4 had a stall at the Thar Fest, complete with a display of the various accessories that you can bolt on to your Thar, Scorpio-N or the Thar Roxx. Also present at the event was a stall dedicated to Thar merchandise, where you could pick up t-shirts, key chains, and even a dashcam for your Mahindra SUV.

Rounding up the event was a concert which included singers such as Aditya Rikhari

What was really cool however was a display of classic Mahindra vehicles. The line-up included everything from the likes of the CJ-3A and CJ-3B 4x4s, the very rare and very cool-looking Mahindra FJ, the Mahindra Armada, Army versions like the CJ-3B RCL and the MM550, and even export models like the CJ340. The highlight of the line-up however were models like the Mahindra Classic – one of the first vehicles aimed at the lifestyle market in the country. Also present were various iterations of the first-gen Mahindra Thar, which included the very first prototype of the vehicle, followed by iterations like the hardy Thar DI and the Thar 700, the latter being a limited-run version of the Thar CRDe. Attendees of the event could also chill out in the Thar VIP zone or sample the great food on offer at Thar Fest, and rounding up the event was a concert which included singers such as Aditya Rikhari.

Organised on the sidelines of the event was the Mahindra Adventure Club Challenge

Organised on the sidelines of the event was the Mahindra Adventure Club Challenge, where 10 off-road teams from across the country competed against the clock in an off-roading competition demonstrating skill and co-ordination alongside the capabilities of their highly-modified machines. And the best part of the Thar Fest was that you didn’t have to own a Thar to attend it, and that it had something to offer for everyone. You had off-roading experiences for enthusiasts, owners of Mahindra SUVs could check out cool accessories for their vehicles, music lovers could enjoy the concert and all of it took place over a chilled-out weekend in Goa. What’s not to like? It truly was a paradise for petrolheads, while also ensuring that the rest of the attendees had a great time – and we’re eagerly awaiting for the next edition of the event.