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A video of Amitabh Bachchan driving the Land Rover Defender Octa, India's most powerful Defender variant, is circulating online with the 83-year-old actor seen behind the wheel himself rather than being chauffeured. What stands out here isn't just the star spotting, it's the car: a 635 hp, BMW-sourced V8 SUV that costs more than most houses and the one Bachchan appears comfortable driving solo at his age. Take a look.
How Much Does the Defender Octa Actually Cost in India?
Land Rover launched the Octa in India at Rs 2.59 crore (ex-showroom) with a limited-run Edition One variant priced higher at Rs 2.79 crore for its first year of production. That places it well above the standard Defender 110 and 130 variants more commonly seen with Bollywood actors and squarely in territory shared with rivals like
the Mercedes-AMG G63 and Toyota Land Cruiser. Bachchan already owns a Defender 130 in his garage. So if the video does show him in an Octa, it would mark a step up to Land Rover's most extreme and expensive Defender trim.
What Makes the Octa India's Most Powerful Defender?
Under the bonnet sits a 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 with mild-hybrid assistance, sourced through a partnership with BMW, producing 635 hp of maximum power and up to 800 Nm of torque when launch control is engaged. That's enough for a 0-100 kmph time of around 4 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 250 kmph. These are the figures that put it ahead of every other Defender variant sold here.
The Octa also gets a 6D Dynamics suspension system that controls body roll without relying on a physical anti-roll bar along with 323 mm of ground clearance and water-wading capability up to one metre. This is deeper than any other Defender.
Why Does This Matter Beyond the Celebrity Angle?
Videos of actors driving high-end SUVs themselves tend to get attention partly because most owners at this price point use a driver. It's a small detail but it also says something about how comfortable Bachchan is behind the wheel of a car this powerful at his age instead of treating it purely as a status symbol parked in the garage.
For buyers actually considering the Octa, the bigger takeaway is straightforward: this isn't a badge-engineered Defender with a bigger engine bolted on, it's a structurally different SUV built specifically around handling that much power both on road and off it.
