Chanchal Pal Chauhan: A whole new driving range

Backstage

As an avid golfer, Hero Honda's managing director Pawan Kant Munjal is always game to try a new course, so it should come as no surprise that the man who drove Hero Honda to become the country's largest two-wheeler manufacturer has even more ambitious plans for his group. Not only is he planning to roll out a passenger car in the next three to four years, he's also announced plans to get into the burgeoning retail sector. The move towards passenger cars, he says, is just natural progression and retail, he says, "caught our attention for our future growth strategy."

Hero, which began with the production of 60 cycles a day 50 years ago was started by Brijmohan Lall, but it is to Munjal that most give the credit for taking the firm to where it is today. At a time when most such marriages have fallen by the wayside, Munjal has managed to keep the relationship with Honda Motor Company of Japan going, despite their seemingly going their separate ways when Honda set up Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI). It was this relationship, for instance, that helped him get Honda to give Hero Honda India's first fuel injection technology in bikes instead of giving it to HMSI. Says Munjal, "There has been lots of speculation and confusion in the market over our relationship with Honda. But the pace at which Hero Honda is growing and the latest technology upgradation being given by Honda leaves no room for any more doubt." A contributing factor, perhaps, is that Hero Honda's growth makes it the fastest any Honda associate has managed anywhere in the world. With rival Bajaj Auto trying to catch up with Hero Honda, the company has already launched six new bikes in the current year "" another two are planned soon, to attack the Pulsar, Bajaj Auto's most popular and premium bike.

Munjal also has a major market share in neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, and is also getting into markets like Egypt, South Africa, Latin America and South-east Asia "" in countries where Honda has a low market share, the two companies will explore partnering together.

Not surprising, given his successful venture with Honda, Munjal is an inseparable part of the Indo-Japanese Forum. He was part of the CEOs delegation accompanying Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on his recent Japanese visit. Munjal is also a member of the prestigious World Economic Forum and the past chairman of the Northern Region of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). A keen golfer, he's been president of the Professional Golfers Association of India (PGAI) and was former chairman of the Asian PGA circuit. Indeed, his company has been the main sponsor of the annual Indian PGA Golf Circuit tournament. Munjal's passion for sports has also seen the Hero Group launch the Hero Indian Sports Academy (HISA) in collaboration with the Laureus Foundation, to be able to reward genuine sporting talent in the country.