Go figure this out: Baskin-Robbins has launched Paanchvi Pass, that incidentally cuts more ice with the youth brigade than the game show hosted on Star TV. The factor common between the two, besides the name?you guessed it?is King Khan.

Come summer and the Rs 2,000 crore ice cream market gears up for its annual slugfest. This year, the freak rainfalls may add a damp squib or two, but the big players are anyway drawn deep into their act. Hindustan Unilever?s Kwality Wall?s has tied up with OxiCash for a ?scratch & win? contest for their Cornetto range of cones. The FMCG major is also hawking its ware at IndianOil outlets.

Meanwhile, Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation?s flagship brand, Amul, is in talks with BPCL to set up Amul mobile kiosks, while Mother Dairy has come armed with a host of new flavours and collectibles.

Not to be outdone, US-headquartered Allied Domecq?s Baskin-Robbins has tied up with Lifestyle, Coca-Cola, ICICI credit cards and Cox & Kings for exclusive retailing. Last but not the least, Cream bell has launched its Fantasia range in four brand new flavours?Belgian Chocolate, Chocolate Coffee, Almond Fudge and Strawberry Farm?in plastic tubs of 750 ml (priced at Rs 135).

?Our Center Treat and juice sticks are also going great guns,? informs Cream bell chief executive MS Parikh.

So there are fireworks around. New flavours, attractive offers, freebies, collectibles, the promise of a wide reach and brand new packaging?anything to get their fangs deeper into the Rs 2,000-crore ice cream market in India (branded: Rs 800-850 crore in value and 100 million litre per annum in volume) that logs its peak sales from April through June, before the monsoons set in.

What may spoil this year?s party somewhat?besides the unseasonal rains in large parts of north India?is the increase in input cost that?s prompted most players to jack up their prices by 3% to 5% in February this year.

?What can we do? Everything has become expensive, milk, petrol and diesel,? rues RS Sodhi, chief general manager, Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd (Amul).

Price, however, is not the only factor that drives this segment. Delivery is also crucial for a product as perishable as ice cream.

?Consumption depends a lot on access. You have to make the product available at the right place, at the right time and considering the Indian psyche, at the right price too, in order to come anywhere close to the Western countries? consumption levels,? says Sailesh Venkatesan, general manager, ice cream division at HUL.

The current per capita Indian consumption is 300 ml/annum, which, given the size of the billion-plus Indian market, compares poorly with 22 litre/annum in the US. But if the market continues to grow at the present 20% per annum, there is reason for cheer.

New flavours and attractive packaging are no doubt major considerations in the growth of an impulse category like ice creams, which is what most players are currently doing. And, the response to these changes is also becoming evident. ?We grew by 17-18% last year,? declares HUL?s Venkatesan.

Variety is another growth driver. ?We launch at least one flavour every month,? declares Sanjay Coutinho, chief operating officer at Baskin-Robbins. Its new lineup includes?Cookies n Cream, Love Potion 31 and Pink Bubble Yum. The company is also planning to come out with ice cream cakes, sundaes and shakes with exotic toppings.

Starting with just one store in 1994, the company now claims 4-5% marketshare and hopes for a 30% growth this summer with 15% extra sales, according to Coutinho. Amul?s new lineup includes Dates with Honey (650 ml plastic container), Hum Tum Kesar Pista Malai Kulfi (1 litre), Koolfi cone (50 ml) and the soon-to-be-launched Swirl Cheese N Strawberry (150 ml/1 litre).

Meanwhile, Mother Dairy?s kulfi range, that earlier featured only Kesar and Pista flavours, now also includes Badam and Mango, ?Our R&D was inspired by a journey through Chandni Chowk and some bylanes of Mumbai,? informs Paul Thachil, CEO, of Mother Dairy.

Health-conscious moms would be glad to know that Mother Dairy?s Fruit Classic range (Strawberry Crush, Mango Marvel and Litchi Surprise) now comes without any artificial flavours (although priced a little steep at Rs 140 a litre) in paper tubs to differentiate from other products. In the Chillz range, the new flavours are Choco Chip Vanilla Cone and Nutty Almond.

Kwality Wall?s (Cornetto) range also has a few, new additions?Almond Praline and Choco Brownie. ?We have an exciting promo tied to this range,? informs Venkatesan. The Cornetto range is priced from Rs 15 to Rs 30.

This summer, the company has also brought its much tom-tommed PaddlePop range to India in three exciting flavours: Candy Cake Explosion, Choco-Berry Nova and Grape Jelly (priced between Rs 5 and Rs 15). It?s got some interesting games on www. paddlepop.in and a bundle of collectibles (CDs, tattoos and stickers).

Small wonder that as the market is getting big, the marketing spends are also getting bigger. ?We plan to do a lot of outdoor and electronic media this summer,? informs Paul of Mother Dairy.

Both Amul and Mother Dairy are also making the most of the current dip in the international prices of natural vanilla. Junking synthetic for natural, Amul rolled out Vanilla Royale in February 2006, followed by Mother Dairy in October 2007 with two Natural Vanilla flavours ? Choco Fudge Cake and 100% Natural Vanilla. Each new ice cream launch, it needs to be mentioned, packs in some extra quantity (25% to 50%) in 500 ml, 750 ml or 1 litre packs.

In fact, packaging is so important for this impulse category that Kwality Wall?s has recently re-launched Selections in attractive tubs with more sauces, nuts and toppings thrown in for good measure (priced at Rs 110 and Rs 120).

Amul has responded with insulated thermal bags to improve the shelf life of their product (in a freezer). Their four litre plastic container for Vanilla Royale, Butter Scotch Classic and Chocolate Bonanza flavours are perfect for a weekend family treat.

All said and done, this year?s top attraction is the probiotic range that?s expected to deliver an additional 10% sales, and leading this health segment is Amul?s Prolife and Sugar Free.

In response, Mother Dairy has something called Diet, that?s also claimed to be low on fat and sugar. ?There is a niche market for these products,? according to Paul of Mother Dairy.

Anand Shah, research analyst (FMCG), Angel Broking, however, sounds a note of caution, ?This market is just opening up.? In other words, let?s wait and see how it shapes up.