How Nilesh Dhumal built ProDirt Adventure into Pune's off-road hub

A dirt track outside Pune turns into a training ground

Off Road Academies runs its flagship site on Andra Dam Road in Rajpuri, in the Maval region outside Pune. The outfit was founded by Nilesh "Nelly" Dhumal and Aishwarya Pissay, who is described on the group's own site and on TVS Motor's website as the first Indian rider to win a world title, the FIM Baja World Cup. On the ground in Pune, the ProDirt Adventure arm of that business is run by Dhumal along with Sunny Dhore, its founder and head trainer, out of the same Rajpuri track.

Off Road Academies says on its website that it has trained over 10,000 riders across India and lists Hero, Royal Enfield, KTM and BMW Motorrad among the brands that trust its coaching. The Rajpuri site itself is built for more than one discipline. Off Road Academies describes tracks there for adventure riding, motocross, 4x4 driving and flat track, along with bike storage, food and camping for riders who stay over.

Why bigger brands use the same patch of dirt

Two OEM programmes now run out of that one track. Kawasaki India's Pune Offroad Program operates from the ProDirt Adventure address, with Dhumal handling enquiries, and uses the Kawasaki KLX230 Rs for every session. Classes run in three hour blocks, a morning batch checking in at 8.30 am and an afternoon batch at 12.30 pm, covering bike familiarisation, safety and trail riding.

TVS Motor's Ronin Drift-R flat track school also treats Pune as its primary academy, with Dhumal as head trainer there too, according to TVS's own blog. The same blog names Aishwarya Pissay among the school's instructors and lists three other cities where the Drift-R programme runs: Aruani Grid in Bengaluru, Throttle Shrottle Moto Ranch in Gurugram for Delhi NCR, and a facility on the outskirts of Hyderabad. The Drift-R itself is a stripped down Ronin with a 225.9cc engine making 20.4 PS, flat tracker tyres and reworked suspension, which TVS says debuted at Motosoul 2023 before the brand launched an inaugural Ronin Drift-R Cup at Motosoul 2024 for riders who come through the school.

What a session costs

Kawasaki's own page lays out exact prices for Pune. An individual slot costs ₹10,000, cut to ₹5,000 for anyone who owns a Kawasaki. A group of five or more pays ₹7,500 a head, or ₹3,750 each if they are Kawasaki customers. The fee includes the KLX230 Rs rental, which Kawasaki values at ₹5,500 on its own, plus full protective gear.

For Indian riders who want structured off-road coaching rather than a weekend trail ride with a club, Rajpuri is now one address that two different OEMs point to, built around trainers who raced before they started teaching.

Sources

• Off Road Academies, Our Story
• Off Road Academies, homepage
• Kawasaki India, Pune Offroad Program
• Nelly, official site
• TVS Motor, TVS Ronin Drift-R flat track school