The Hindu Business Line : Cover to cover!

At the ballroom of Bangalore's Taj West End, publishers rubbed shoulders with best-selling authors, glitzy socialites with business magnates. There was more of a buzz at the Penguin book sales counter than at the cocktail bar.

Featuring glamorous invitees, what was this mega-event about? The launch of celebrity author Vikram Seth's Two Lives. An ingeniously woven non-fiction work about his late UK-based uncle Shanti and his Jewish wife, Henny, which spans a century, continents and significant segments of history.

Seth, a diminutive figure in a kurta and raw silk jacket, entered amidst popping flashbulbs. A sea of faces followed his progress to the dais. He waved a gaggle of photographers away with palpable irritation. He wanted no intrusions during his reading of select excerpts.

Post-reading, a serpentine queue wound its way to Seth, clutching copies of his books, seeking an autograph in his noted calligraphic hand. Behind us, a conversation called for attention:

Distinguished lady business executive in a silk sari: "What does a book launch like this cost? I wish I knew... "

Her companion, a power dresser and noted globetrotter: "I don't know, but wouldn't Seth's books sell even without this hoopla?"

Discerning, intelligent questions that deserve answers, however tentative. How do Indian bookstores, publishers, public relations and marketing executives gauge the phenomenon of book launches? For these events draw standing-room-only attendance when the author is Nobel laureate V.S. Naipaul, only a desultory sprinkling of family/friends/well-wishers when a fledgling author is featured.

Yet, a first-time, Singapore-based author named Chetan Bhagat set the cash registers jingling when his 2004 debut novel Five Point Someone sold 70,000 copies in its launch week, reaching its twentieth impression in phenomenal time. Not too far off the one lakh-plus mark that Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix touched during its pan-India launch-day.

What's the fine print about the Indian book launch? "It is essentially an exercise in brand visibility and brand extension, with the specific focus on a title, author, list or genre. We look for interest being generated around the brand and the specific author/title," says New Delhi-based Hemali Sodhi, Senior Marketing and Promotions Manager, Penguin India.

Kapish Mehra of Rupa & Co, India's only publisher-cum-distributor, adds, "We aren't selling T-shirts. Ours is a noble product. Our marketing is based on good content, packaged well. We're careful about our guest list. Random celebrities and a Page 3 crowd don't always work."

What counts to Jai Subramaniam of the Chennai-based Landmark lifestyle stores, which were originally book-centric? "What's important is a happy audience," he says. "That's besides the number of books sold at the launch, media coverage, interaction with the author, and future sales, especially through word of mouth."

The `perfect' launch

Amidst the crush of new titles, a throng of authors, mind-boggling advances and media hype, all jostling for space centre-stage, what makes a memorable launch? Bangalore-based Radhika Misra, an independent PR consultant whose clients include Landmark and Rupa & Co, spotlights a few outstanding events. Such as Nobel laureate V.S. Naipaul's presence at the unveiling of his recent Magic Seeds. Or the quiz-based format for diplomat-turned-author Vikas Swarup's 2005 Q&A. Or Natasha Pratap's How to Study in the US at Landmark.

Of the latter, Radhika recalls, "We had over 200 students attend Natasha's workshop and interactive session at Landmark, to benefit from her experience as a student in the US, selling over 150 copies at the event itself."

Hemali's pick includes the event for Shobhaa De's Spouse, formatted as a talk show among celebrity couples. And Amartya Sen's The Argumentative Indian, featuring lectures by the Nobel economist.

Radhika highlights another aspect: "Book launches also serve as a means to infuse excitement and fun into book reading and expand the reader population, which has dwindled over the past few years."

"Books are perhaps the only product, besides music, where the value cannot be judged by the sum of its individual components. These are products of ideas/imagination," Hemali says.

How essential is PR and media hype to a book's build-up? "PR is very important in our times. It packages material professionally, adding value to the overview," stresses Subramaniam. "A book and its author belong within a bookstore, not at a five-star hotel. It gives the intelligent, average reader access to the event. Remember how articulate Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni's Queen of Dreams was so well covered by the media."

What kind of outlay does an Indian book launch entail? It could range from Rs 10,000 to Rs 2 lakh, usually shared by the publisher and the bookstore/ hotel. This includes pre-launch advertisements, PR costs, banners and posters, hotel bills, refreshments and occasional location costs.

Does the presence of public figures make for higher visibility? "The value of Page 3 is questionable, but public figures do make for photo ops," muses Subramaniam.

Radhika emphasises, "Public figures help to draw media visibility, but one must be cautious in selecting someone who has a connect with the book or subject. Sometimes, specially in the case of a debutant author's launch, the public figure may dominate the proceedings and use the event as a platform to communicate his/her personal messages instead, leading to sheer disaster."

New talent

Amidst marketing blitz, do publishers dare lay their money on untested talent as an act of faith? "Yes, we would," says Hemali. "Penguin has consistently published and promoted new and cutting-edge fiction and non-fiction, sometimes by relatively unknown authors, that push the boundaries of conventional wisdom."

Mehra adds, "At Rupa, we're not into PR publishing. We think it's important to promote fresh talent like Chetan Bhagat, currently India's fastest selling author."

How do Indian launches compare with similar events abroad? "Ours are much bigger than the average western do, which is usually just a wine and cheese party for about 25 to 30 people," observes Hemali.

"I guess there are fewer launches in the UK or US, usually arranged by book societies for about 50 people to meet the author over coffee," says Mehra.

Tongue-in-cheek, Subramaniam asserts, "It's still at a nascent phase there. Perhaps five people and their dogs... "

Are J.K. Rowling and her Harry Potter series, with the hugely happening event for the sixth volume at a Scottish castle, the ultimate benchmark? "It was the greatest product that sold more in three days than in the next year and a half," observes Subramaniam.

Hemali seconds that, "No, the Harry Potter series is more an exception than the rule. Everything connected with it is on a grand scale. Comparing anything in the publishing world to Harry Potter is a bit of an unproductive exercise."

What will distinguish future Indian book launches? Possibly the global touch. Subramaniam concludes, "We're working with publishers to bring in international authors like Jeffrey Archer and Thomas L. Friedman. That's what our readers can look forward to."

Picture by Murali Kumar K.