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Maruti Suzuki Swift
It's no surprise that the Swift features in this list, really. We fell in love with it the moment we drove it, and it even went on to win our Car of the Year award 2012 and the Indian Car of the Year award 2012, too! With a very taut chassis and light weight, the Swift handles like no other hatchback in the segment. Pair that with the brilliant 1.3-litre MultiJet engine and you get one sweet package overall. Sure, it's down on power compared to the others, but it more than makes up for that in terms of driving dynamics. The Swift has also got pretty much all the features you could ask for and a roomier interior than the last iteration, so carting your family around won't be a problem when it comes to the Swift. However, it is priced on the higher side, and luggage space is lacking. That aside, we still say in terms of sheer driving fun, nothing else comes close to the Swift.
Fiat set off the hot hatch movement in India with the Palio 1.6, so it's only natural that the company still plays a huge part in the hatchback wars. The Punto 90 features the same engine as the Indica Vista D90, but it is lighter than the Indica, which gives it better performance. Solid build quality and great driving feel give the driver all the confidence they need when driving hard. The design might be a bit old, but it still looks pretty good to us. For those that think it's getting a little long in the tooth, there's a facelift coming up soon enough.
Like the Punto and the Indica, the i20, too, comes with a powerful 89 bhp, 1.4-litre engine under the hood. The motor is very torquey and the in-gear acceleration shoves you back into your seat, so you can play boy racer! An artificial-feeling steering wheel and light controls take away some of the fun of driving it hard. Better stick with this if you want a comfortable, effortless hatch though. But if what you're looking for is a very spirited runabout, we'd opt for something else.
We'll admit the Liva isn't exactly out favourite hatchback, but there's no denying that it's a fun to drive car. Sure, it has a pretty basic interior, but thanks to the latest refresh, it gets two-tone finishing and some new features as well. In terms of grunt, the Liva only makes 67 bhp of peak power, but it also weighs less than a tonne, so that means you can flick the Liva around into bends and derive your fun. If Toyota can solve the quality issues and add some more sound insulation, the Etios Liva still stands to make some hatchback owners very happy people.
