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i10. What do you attribute this to?

Elementary—I’d attribute it to consistent feedback. Three and a half year is what it normally takes to freeze specs on a new model, but with i10, the R&D took a little longer. If you’ve seen the car, it packs in a host of value-added features; beige interiors, in-dash music system, sun roof, two air bags, IABS safety, a choice of five variants (three basic, two optional)—it’s a fully-loaded car very attractively priced for the Indian market at Rs 4.79 lakh.

Lets forget the judges. If you were asked to rate i10, how would you score it on a five point scale in terms of quality, ride, handling, driveability, comfort and safety?

Six out of five on all parameters and that won’t be an exaggeration. Consult any auto expert. Or quiz a customer. He’s generally the most discerning. They tell us that it surpasses their expectations. I’ve been told that on the highway, i10 performs as good as a big car. Believe me, on this price band, you can’t beat this kind of value in any car.

Do awards really change perceptions?

To an extent. Awards give recognition to a good product. It validates your product and reinforces its image, even though there may not be any direct co-relation between the awards and product sales. But it does create interest in the mind.

You’ve succeeded very well with hatchbacks (Santro, Getz) but your sedans (Accent, Elantra, Verna) haven’t cut much ice, why? A few years ago, you even tried price reduction with Accent GVS—did that help?

I do not agree with you that Accent or Verna have not cut much ice with the Indian consumer. If the difference in sales is just 300 to 400 units in a month between the segment lead and the Verna—would you call that a big difference? The diesel version of Verna, let me tell you is among the biggest selling, although you cannot of course compare it to Indigo or Logan because its not in the same price bandwidth.