Steering the Nano

Three Nanos drove onto a darkened stage, bright beams blinking, as the dramatic strains of Thus Spake Zarathustra swirled over the vast gathering at the Parsi Gymkhana. The landmark launch in Bombay on March 23, 2009 of the world’s cheapest car once again brought India into world limelight. Expressing his thanks for the "resounding support,” Ratan Tata, chairman of the Tata Group, stated that this was a memorable day in a six-year journey since the business decision was taken to "conceive and produce a small car that would give the people an affordable, all-weather transport at a price within their reach. Little did we know that we would attract so much attention in India and outside…

"I dedicate this car to the youth of India. It is a car developed by a young team. It has broken many barriers in terms of concepts,” Tata stated. The "people’s car” will cost one lakh rupees for the base version, at the factory gate at Pantnagar in Uttarakhand where the cars will roll out from, at this point of time. "I am pleased to say the promise (made six years ago) has been kept. We (Tata Motors) have put the Nano into the market nine months before the plant (at Sanand in Gujarat) is in operation,” the chairman asserted. Asked at a press conference earlier in the afternoon in the newly reopened Crystal Room at the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower what he would like to say to Mamata Banerjee (Trinamool Congress leader whose intractable attitude almost wrecked the project), Tata replied in his characteristic measured manner: "I would like to say Good Afternoon,” and the assembled media roared with laughter!

Ratan Tata (right) with Tata Motors managing director Ravi Kant and the Nano

The global economic situation makes the car more attractive, the chairman believed. With Nano Europa already unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in March and expected on the road within a couple of years, Tata declared that after a three-year period, the car would be reengineered for American needs and would serve US markets too. "Tatas’ car sends out a strong signal India will be at the wheel when the world takes the road to (economic) recovery,” wrote The Economic Times (ET), March 24 in its front-page coverage. The paper also reports that Tata Motors "is looking to extend its low-cost revolution beyond the Nano to the commercial vehicle space…Tata Motors is believed to be working on a three to four tonne low-cost truck which could debut sometime in the next few months.”

The marketing of Nano is itself a logistical exercise! Forms (priced at Rs 300 each) are available at approximately 30,000 locations across 1,000 cities in India. Online booking is also available, with the Nano website reportedly registering 30 million hits so far! The three variants — Standard (non-a/c), CX (a/c) and LX (deluxe) — will cost the customer between Rs 1.23 lakh and Rs 1.85 lakh (ex Delhi and Bombay) and will roll out in July.

Looking back, "one can reminisce on how many people disbelieved in what you set out to do. What you did actually end up doing tells you that if you pursue (your goal), you will make it. Nothing is impossible if you set your mind to it,” the head of the Tata Group stated. "Today is Ratan Tata’s day. India should be proud of what he and Tata Motors have done in spite of all the problems. It looks a very good product,” ET quotes B. N. Kalyani, chairman and managing director of Bharat Forge. "I think the next challenge would be to live up to people’s aspirations. To make the experience of buying, owning, servicing and supporting the Nano different from what you might have experienced. The challenge will also be to have people understand that the Nano is not a Honda, not a Toyota. It’s a low-cost car,” Tata is quoted in The Times of India, March 20. "It is important for us to maintain a sustained quality from our suppliers and our own ability to meet product standards. All these issues should be very challenging.”