For the past four months, PVR Ltd's Group President, Pramod Arora, has been clocking up air miles as he travelled the world looking for inspiration. In fact Arora travelled so far and wide that he could be soon be dubbed Ryan Bingham - the character played by George Clooney in the film Up in the Air. 
 
Multiplexes are generally not known to be citadels of innovation but in a country where cricket and movies are a religion it is important to keep pioneering to stay relevant. At the heart of this exercise is one of PVR's one of the most ambitious and largest projects till date - the 15 screen 'Superplex' in Noida. 
 
"As plans for the Superplex were drawn, I visited every cinema hall in every part of the world to experience the best practices that we can pick up. At the end I realized cinema industry may not be the correct industry to look at. By looking at the cinema industry we realized that either we were ahead of what others were doing or at par with what they were doing," says Arora. 
 
Arora turned elsewhere for insights. "In terms of benchmark we decided to compare ourselves to the hospitality industry and also looked at companies like Apple. People say there are no similarities between Apple and the cinema industry but there are immense commonalities. 
 
Arora says the trick lies in making sure the consumer is deriving satisfaction from the product you are selling in the minimum possible time and how a company is able to retain the consumer, once he is serviced, for the maximum possible time. "In this minimum and maximum lies your ability to monetize and this is what we are trying to master. For us it was picking up the thread from various industries across the globe," says Arora. 
 
PVR now plans to invest Rs. 250 crore to add 100 new screens this fiscal. It currently has 444 screens in 101 properties spread across 43 cities and targets to touch 1,000 screens by 2017-18. The Superplex is expected to be operational by end of March 2015 and the 15 screen complex would cost the company about Rs. 50 crore to develop. 
 
Inception: 
 
According to a KPMG report Multiplexes, as of today, account for approximately 25 percent of the total number of screens in the country with a low screen density of 8 screens per million in comparison with 117 per million in the US. "Given the low screen penetration, India has the potential to significantly increase the number of existing multiplex screens in the country over the next decade without causing an oversupply of screens," says the KPMG report. 
 
In 2013, the industry added approximately 150-200 screens, with major growth coming from expansion of multiplexes in tier II and III cities. Occupancy levels for major multiplexes players have risen from approximately 23-27 percent in 2011 to more than 30 per cent in 2013. 
 
"In India movie watching theoretically begins from the age of 5. If we look at cinema halls we will see that we do not provide anything for five year olds except sit on their mother's lap and cry or disturb others around them. We have realized that the categories of ages 5-9 need to be addressed," says Arora. 
 
Arora says PVR Superplex will have a special auditorium designed called the 'PVR Playhouse'- an exclusive fun and entertainment destination for children. PVR Playhouse will witness a space exclusively for kids to be at their natural best. The auditorium will have half dim light - brighter lighting than other formats, cartoon characters both on and off screen and special seating facilities like bean bags to create a comfortable environment. "For younger kids, PVR will provide visual attractions like play seats, playful interiors and the middle alley will resemble a slope just like a slide for kids to enjoy. Keeping in mind the safety of kids, the flooring will have a rubberized surface for an easy topple," says Arora. 
 
PVR will also operate on the opposite end of the age spectrum as the new multiplex would also have a different screen for senior citizens. 
 
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Avatar: 
 
PVR is well aware that technology changes fast and multiplexes in days to come may not be the preferred medium for cinema as home theater screens are becoming better and bigger. "For example HD has become table stake today and we have understood that if we do not make our medium more immersive, it is not really going to deliver the bang for the buck for the consumer," says Arora. 
 
For an immersive movie viewing PVR is addressing the sound and the elctroacoustics in a much more superior way. "George Lucas has done this in the US for time immemorial but why people have not taken it up is because it is expensive," says Arora. 
 
He adds that PVR took two years to re-engineer the technology at a fraction of a cost. "For example if it rains in the movie, you currently hear it from the surround system or from the speakers behind the screen. For you to be able to feel rain the sound must come from the top and when it falls to the ground, the sound must come from the bottom. From an engineering perspective, it is a very big problem but we have worked on it and managed to reduce the cost associated with it," says Rao. 
 
With respect to screens the ones in cinemas today is flat. PVRs new screen would be curved or concave, which would provide a more immersive and greater viewing area. PVR says there is a perceptible difference in viewing. "These Silver screens are more expensive to the tune of about 200 percent but since it lasts for about 20 years so it's worth it," says Arora. 
 
Five formats and a playhouse: 
 
This will be the first time PVR brings all its brands under one roof. PVR currently runs five brands ranging from IMAX, ECX (enhanced cinema experience), PVR Premier, Directors Cut, PVR 4DX in India and with the addition of PVR Playhouse will operate six formats, all under one roof. "PVR stands as a strong mother brand and we were looking to introduce the other brands of cinemas. IMax is one of them and then we go on incorporating multiple other brand that PVR straddles under one roof. This way failure of one brand will never be able to define or shape the final outcome of the mother brand," says Arora. 
 
According to Emkay Global Financial Services research report, PVR enjoys a market share of 20-22 percent and 30-35 percent of Bollywood and Hollywood box-office film revenues, respectively. This provides better negotiating power for content sharing with distributors/producers. Its right location strategy and aggressive expansion plans would continue to drive footfalls and revenues, going forward. Emkay also sees robust growth in F&amp;B and advertisement, which would help drive revenue/EBITDA at a CAGR of 17 percent/23 percent over FY14-16 (estimate), resulting in healthy cash generation. 
 
Chocolat: 
 
As discretionary spends on eating out is on a rise, if cinemas go on serving the consumer with Soda and popcorn, it is not going to take them far. "The consumer is ready to pay money but they need quality and service. In a cinema environment it is challenging to provide gourmet chef driven menu but we have decided to push ahead. We have decided to come up with a menu that change with the season and that is being mastered now and by the time the complex is open, he would be ready to cater to all," says Arora. 
 
A multiplex has limited retail space to display food items so PVR will push information on food on cinema goers' mobile phones and through specialized tablets. "We will have a large base kitchen in the multiplex and once you order your food through the PVR app or through the tablets we will have in the multiplex, fresh food will be delivered to your seats. Different strokes for different folks as senior citizens will get large plasma screens to make their food choice," says Arora. KPMG says currently, an exhibitor's revenue comprises of 70 percent of ticket sales, 20 percent of food and beverages and 10 percent of cinema advertising. 
 
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A. I. Artificial Intelligence: 
 
Major corporate houses have multiple Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems running but when it comes to engagement most companies in India have been going wrong. "Forget about going into predictive intelligence, many have not even been able to identify the sex of the individual whose mobile number they have in their database," says Arora. 
 
The mobile app of PVR, developed in-house, now uses predictive intelligence where it knows what you have been watching, what you like, what you did not and a plethora of data around an individual's movie watching habits. "We envisage a situation where you are a part of a community that wants to watch a movie like Mughal-e-Azam, which is not running in the cinemas; you should be able to book a cinema for that movie if say 60 such individuals decide to watch it on a particular date and time," says Arora.
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Lord Of The Screen: How PVR Is Innovating To Stay Ahead

NEW DELHI: Honda Cars India on Wednesday launched its new Multi-Purpose Vehicle (MPV), the Mobilio at a starting price of Rs 6.49 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). The petrol car will cost Rs 6.49 lakh for the E variant; Rs 7.50 lakh for S variant and Rs 8.76 lakh for the V variant. 
 
The diesel variants have been priced between Rs 7.89 lakh to Rs 10.86 lakh. The seven-seater MVP will take on the likes of Maruti Suzuki Ertiga, Mahindra Xylo, Nissan Evalia and even the Toyota Innova. Its closest competitor, the Ertiga petrol starts at Rs. 5.8 lakh and goes up to to Rs. 7.3 lakh while Diesel starts at Rs. 7.22 lakh and goes up to Rs. 8.49 lakh. 
 
Honda said that the name Mobilio has been coined from English words mobility and mobile. Honda Mobilio's deliveries will begin from today. 
 
The Honda Mobilio MPV is 4.4-metre long with a wheelbase of 2.6-metre and has a ground clearance of 185mm. While it looks similar to the Amaze sedan and Brio hatchback, it manages to be distinct with its stretched out proportions and non-boxy looks. The Mobilio looks the most distinct from the rear as all resemblance to the hatch and a sedan ends with a new set of tail lamps and plenty of curves. 
 
Moving to the interior - the Mobilio gets a two-tone colour scheme, which makes the cabin feel roomy. The seats are flexible with plenty of storage space, with a generous amount of cabin space and good amount of headroom. What is impressive is that even the third row seat gets adequate knee room and can be used for long drives. The interior of the Mobilio is similar to what we have on the Brio and Amaze. 
 
The entertainment system has been lifted from the new City, which also serves as a screen for the reversing camera on the top end variant of the car. The top end variant also gets faux wood fittings on the dash and the door, and faux leather seats. Base cargo are is at 223 L which can be enhanced to 512L in the third row fold configuration. 
 
 
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The Mobilio will be powered by the new 1.5-litre turbocharged Earth Dreams diesel engine that does duty on the Amaze and City churning out power of 100ps@3600 rpm and torque of 200 Nm@ 1750 rpm. The diesel engine continues to be noisy but Honda has done a better job in insulating the noise out in the Mobilio. 
 
The petrol variant gets the 1.5-litre i-VTEC unit producing a power of 119ps@6600 rpm and 145Nm of torque and is peppy and is the same that powers the City. Both engines are mated to a 5-speed manual transmission. 
 
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Mobilio also gets a bolder and sportier looking sport version in the form of RS, which comes with dynamic front and rear bumpers, projector headlamps with LED position lamps. Alloy wheels, chrome grille, tailgate spoiler and chrome exterior door handles. The RS will be available for deliveries by September 2014. 
 
The Mobilio has been developed at Honda R&amp;D Asia Pacific Co. Ltd in Bangkok, Thailand. "Honda has vast experience in offering a variety of premium MPVs to customers globally. Drawing from this varied experience, Honda engineers have used the same technological know-how and design philosophy to develop the Mobilio," said Yoshiyuki Matsumoto, Managing Officer, Honda Motor Company. 
"The launch of Honda Mobilio follows the success of Honda Amaze and all-new City which has led to our growth of 83 percent in the previous financial year," said Hironori Kanayama, President and CEO, Honda Cars India Ltd. 
 
The Mobilio has been launched in Indonesia in January this year and has clocked 46,000 units in sales. Honda expects sales of Asia Pacific to be at 1.2 million by 2017 and HCIL is expected to contribute 25 percent or 300,000 units in sales by then. The Mobilio is being manufactured at the company's Greater Noida plant and has 90 percent localization. HCIL is also expanding its dealer network to 230 facilities in 150 cities by end of 2014-14, with 75 percent coming up in smaller towns and cities. 
 
Price: 
 
Petrol E - 6.49 lakh S- 7.5 lakh V- 8.76 lakh 
 
Diesel E- 7.89 lakh S - 8.60 lakh V- 9.76 lakh RS- 10.86 lakh 
 
Mobilio by numbers: 
 
Petrol: 1497cc, 119ps @ 6600rpm, 145Nm @ 4600rpm, 
 
Diesel: 1498cc, 100rpm @ 3600rpm, 200Nm @1750rpm, 
 
Dimensions: 
 
LxWxH: 4386x1683x1603mm 
 
Wheelbase: 2652mm 
 
Ground Clearance: 189mm 
 
Tyres: 185/65 R15 
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Pranbihanga Borpuzari

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Honda Mobilio MPV Launched At A Starting Price Of Rs 6.49 Lakh

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