January 10, 2008. A Thursday like never before. Ratan Tata’s dream ‘car for the masses’ Nano is unveiled in front of a packed audience at Pragati Maidan. The true people’s car can actually sit four persons and still travel around 22 kilometres for Rs 48 (cost of one litre of petrol).

It will cost you Rs 1.3 lakh to own one. But the big question is: When will it actually arrive at your place? Looking at the mass hysteria, it might take as long as mid-2010. Now how am I connected to all this? I happened to be there on the day little Nano was revealed to the world. Unfortunately, the first day of the 9th Auto Expo was a media day, and I didn’t know that.

Once near the expo, a policeman rudely brought me back to my senses. Helpless, I looked on to catch a glimpse of a known face. Some minutes passed by. No media card, no identity proof, except my card, stating that I worked for a Chennai company, and which was of little use. Finally, by sheer luck I bumped into Mr K. Swamy — connected with a component manufacturers association and one of the organisers — at the entrance. A smile and a few words later, I was in, with Mr Swamy leading the way. Now, as we entered the enclosure that spanned halls 2 to 6, I was amazed to see so many cars and people. This was my first visit to an auto expo. Vehicles of all shapes and sizes — commercial utility vehicles, buses, small trucks and two-wheelers — were parked all around, and the place was teeming with media-persons. But my eyes were on the cars, especially on the one waiting to claim the crown of ‘cheapest car’ from Chinese automaker Chery Automobiles. At the over 5,000 sq m Tata Motors stall, hundreds of media persons waited with bated breath. The hour had come.

As Mr Ratan Tata, Mr Krishna Kant and a few others from Tata Motors stood by, the white Nano rolled down the aisle, as if happy by the euphoria that was all too evident. And then I met the 38-year-old Girish Wagh, the brain behind the car we all are so proud of. Here comes the interesting part. He talked to me and I recorded it on tape. Here is the unedited version of my tête-À-tête with the head of Tata Motors’ Engineering Research Centre.

Me: (nervous) Congratulations, Mr Wagh, on an excellent car. You have changed the game.

Girish: Thank you so much. It’s what a team of dedicated individuals can do!

Me: How could you achieve something that was well-nigh impossible. Everybody said…

Girish: (while shaking hands with journalists) Cost reduction, ensuring quality standards and, finally, a car that was safe on the roads. And yes, a kind of performance that was demonstrable.

Me: But between the announcements made by Ratan Tata in 2005 and now, input costs rose… (had to repeat the question again — natural ambience effect!)

Girish: Costs can be reduced with a change in procurement tactics. Internet auctions, adhesives in place of costly welding, size, a rear engine (reduces length of engine compartment) all played a role. Components from suppliers, my team and continuous R&D made sure that it is a safe vehicle.

Me: What was your biggest challenge?

Girish: (pausing more a moment) The truck (Ace) was a different experience for me. But Nano already had the price tag. We had to virtually back-calculate. We couldn’t do anything to go through the target. Packaging was also critical. A bit of additional weight meant everything had to be done again.

Me: Do you think the low-cost Nano will help make Tata Motors more profitable?

Girish: Are you talking about margins? I am not the right person to talk about that…but the car is in front of you. As Mr Tata said, it’s been created to cater to the needs of the family that was travelling on a scooter. We think it has great potential.

Me: But everything was not as rosy for the company even five years ago. What changed?

Girish: (After a conversation with a colleague, who possibly told him to finish quickly) We were bleeding in 2000. Costs could be rationalised. At a meeting Mr Kant told us to bring it down by 10 per cent. We finally hit the right buttons. As an organisation, we changed rapidly. Nano…it’s not just a new car but a new way of doing things.

Me: I won’t detain you any longer. Just a final question. Any regrets on any aspect of the project?

Girish: None at all. I had the best team to work with. Leaders who were always there and a nascent desire to make one man’s dream a reality.

Me: No concerns, then…

Girish: (as he left) If I had, we wouldn’t have brought out the product. It’s completely safe and delivers on the promise: The 1 lakh car…

God was kind to me later that day. It turned out during lunch that some auto component company executives were talking to Mr Wagh. Suddenly the gloomy faces of the representatives of the auto component industry had vanished. Singur can do 2.5 lakh now as far as capacity is concerned. Another lakh might be added, and so too can other manufacturing locations. Didn’t record this part but will let my readers trust my good memory anyway.

Me: Hi Girish, hope I’m not disturbing again.

Girish: No. Please.

Me: Some say you guys just wanted to corner a share of the three-wheeler market.

Girish: (in a non-resentful way) It’s okay. People drive vehicles but a car is a much better option than a three-wheeler. Everybody wants to make the small car. India has potholes on city roads. In many villages, we don’t even have roads. Ace succeeded hugely because customers knew it was what they wanted. With Nano, four wheels can do the job of two.

Me: Steve Jobs may be angry with Tata Motors. Nobody will talk about iPod nano in India…

Girish: (Laughing) That’s a first. Anyway we have applied for 34 patents for the powertrain design and once granted, they will be for the Tata Nano. Nano is small or the smallest. It’s 8 per cent smaller than the next bigger competitor! Everything has innovation written on it. From windshield wipers, rear engine layout, spacious design, fuelling system and tubeless tyres. I believe, Apple will be happy, not sad.

I had to discontinue the conversation but it left an indelible mark on my mind. What Americans, Japanese and even the mighty Chinese couldn’t do…we Indians have. While well-known activist Sunita Narain might be shouting from the rooftop about pollution and the environment, Tata claims that Nano complies with Bharat Stage-III and even stringent Euro-IV emission benchmarks.

The Tata Group cannot build roads; that the government has to do. Levy taxes for each use of the affordable car, as author Tim Harford suggested in his 2005 book The Undercover Economist. That your car’s down payment is the full payment doesn’t merely suggest low-cost but points to the way things are going to be done from now on.

It’s a new world for manufacturers of not only cars but for everybody who can tie up resources smartly. Consumer is the king, finally. More importantly, the ‘Nano way’ of empowering a younger generation to lead innovation could well be the new way for tired managements of aging companies to surge through in these fiercely competitive times.

Readers can mail me their comments, suggestions and advice at swatilistening@gmail.com

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