Is the Indica just a test bed for Tata in their efforts to become a successful car maker? Or is the V2 a genuinely improved Indica? We find out
The big laugh doing the rounds in Mumbai is on the new TV commercial for the Tata Indica. Yes, the same one where a few Japanese (Korean?) testers wearing motorcycle helmets do various stunts and nod their approval for the car at the end of it.
I don't know whether it is true, but a few friends swear to God that some of those 'Oriental testers' are employees at various Chinese restaurants in Mumbai.
Don't worry, the advert signs off with a Japanese tea ceremony...in case you were wondering whether it was the Chinese who were testing the car. Let us get serious.
So, Tata Engineering wants to convey the message that their car is worth earning respect from even the successful Japanese car manufacturers, right?
Actually, I don't blame Tata, or for that matter, their advertising agency. To be likened to a Japanese car maker, anyone from Suzuki to Toyota, is a dream for most car companies in the world.
These Japanese giants seem to have the products, manufacturing ethics and brand values that DaimlerChrysler and Ford would die for. What the heck, recent financial reports suggest that Toyota alone is worth more than what GM, DC and Ford all put together (source: Automotive World, May 2001).
So if you are half as patriotic as I am and cheer Saurav Ganguly even when he seems to have forgotten the last time he made contact with a cricket ball...relax. Tata is upping their game and that can only be good news.
To find out how much of good news the Indica V2 is, we managed to get a test car from Tata
