Highlights of what Ratan Tata said through the day:

The small-car dream

It started with a dream but it wouldn’t have been realised without the effort of the 500 engineers who worked for four years and brought out a product that the world said couldn’t be done.

Social vs business

We didn’t hang out the Rs 1-lakh tag; the media did it. We had two options: we could either choose to ignore it, or we could treat it as a challenge. We decided on the second option. It started out as a social project; but it is grounded in strong business sense. We are not going to jeopardise the company (Tata Motors).

(This statement is significant. Ten years ago, after the launch of the Indica, the company which was known as Telco at that time, tipped into a loss for the first time in its history).

The planning

We used the Maruti 800 as a benchmark. In terms of length, it is around 10 per cent shorter than the M800, but in terms of internal dimensions it is 21 per cent more. We achieved this by putting the engine in the boot and freeing up the front.

Different car

This project started as a serious attempt to find a solution to the hazards of two-wheelers in the country — especially to families who for want of options must use a scooter or a motorcycle. We wanted to create an affordable means of family transport. Initially, we had conceived the project differently. For instance, we thought of using plastic flaps instead of doors. But our final product is a full-fledged car at a low cost. It’s a small, well-designed, four-door vehicle that seats four or five and is economical to operate.

Mid-course change

I would have been very excited to use plastic. Rising plastic prices and safety considerations forced to us make a mid-course change in strategy. After all, we weren’t a plastic maker going out to make a car.

That’s why we abandoned the unconventional option for a more conventional way of making a car.

Rivals

I don’t think anyone (the rivals) should have sleepless nights (over the launch of the Nano). This was achieved by young engineers who had never attempted this sort of project before. It could be achieved by other companies as well. The question is do they have a desire to do so? It could be bettered by someone else, and then the pressure would be on us to lead again.

Market might

The market will decide whether this product succeeds. If we succeed, we will break new ground for India. This car is a vindication of all that we set out to do. The final judgement is going to be made by the consumer. If he thinks it’s good value for money, he will acquire it whether it’s Rs 1 lakh or higher. Why are we deciding what the consumer should have?

The Nano name

We had several names before us. Some of us said let’s call it Buddho (after Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, chief minister of Bengal). Others said let’s call it Mamata or Despite Mamata. Finally, we settled on Nano.

The dark days

The toughest part (of the entire exercise) was continuing to believe that we could do it. Because there are hard times when you think it may not work. I never felt that the project would not go through. But there were times when I thought that we might not meet our cost targets, or times when we wouldn’t meet some of our time goals. There was a time that I thought we wouldn’t be able to make it to the Auto Expo to unveil the car.

Buddha govt

I think all of us in the company would like to acknowledge the support we received from the Bengal government. We decided to do something unconventional insofar as where we located the project. Eastern India had been somewhat neglected. So, we decided to locate the manufacturing plant in Bengal. In that sense, it was a leap of faith that our company took to do something differently at a time when several states wooed us. The Bengal government has been supportive through pretty difficult times and stood with us. It is the sort of government that we would like to stand with through the difficult times in the future.

Retirement

I think everybody has a desire to step aside and do the things that one wants to do. I have a great desire to change gears. But there are some responsibilities that I still need to fulfil and I will then happily step aside. Then you wouldn’t have to worry about somebody having a different dream (laughter).

The official date of retirement — which is separate from the launch of the small car — will be decided separately.