U. S.-based iconic bike maker Indian Motorcycle International recently announced its entry into emerging economy of India, offering consumers new options staring at a whopping price tag of Rs 26.5 lakh.

Polaris India, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Polaris Industries, launched its Indian Motorcycle brand in Gurgaon on Wednesday this week. However, even the least-expensive 'Indian' bike Chief Classic is quite unaffordable for a common Indian.

While the Indian Chief Classic cost Rs 216.5 lakh (ex-showroom), Indian Chief Vintage and Indian Chieftain have been priced at Rs 29.5 lakh and Rs 33 lakh, respectively.

Pankaj Dubey, managing director of Polaris India, said, "This launch holds great importance for us... Polaris India has ended the long wait for Indian motorcycle enthusiasts with this launch."

All of the three Indian bikes are powered by the company's cutting-edge Thunderstroke 111 engine, which has six-speed transmission and is a 1,819cc V-twin unit capable of delivering 161Nm of torque. These bikes will compete with other super-premium bikes like Harley-Davidson, BMW and Ducati.

Speaking on the occasion of the Indian bikes' launch, Dubey added that they expected the market size for superbikes in India to grow by 40-50 per cent year-on-year in 2014.