Matchbox Movieworks and Boria Majumdar Collaborate to Bring Indian Sport Stories to Screen

MUMBAI, 16th March, 2020: Matchbox Movieworks, a production house, helmed by Sarita Patil, Kewal Garg and Sanjay Routray, who produced the clutter breaking film Andhadhun, will now also focus on getting yet unexplored stories from Indian sports to screen. This banner comes together with India’s most celebrated sports journalist, Boria Majumdar to work on multiple projects for OTT platforms and other media, based on his books-‘Dreams of a Billion- India and the Olympic Games’ (with Nalin Mehta) and '1971: The Year that changed Indian cricket' (with Gautam Bhattacharyya).

In the growing OTT space, there is visible void of content drawn from Indian sport. This collaboration will be a big step in recreating stories of celebrated Indian sportspeople, their trials, tribulations and journeys often marked with behind the scene controversies, which are synonymous with India’s sporting evolution, documented with panache in both these works.

'Dreams of a Billion- India and the Olympic Games’, provides an inside view of what goes on backstage in Indian Olympics universe, alongside a history of India’s performance. Recently, Sachin Tendulkar, Abhinav Bindra and Mahesh Bhupati had spoken of this book’s importance at its launch. '1971' is the year of Indian cricket’s original renaissance and witnessed the emergence of Sunil Gavaskar on the scene. The year India beat the West Indies and England away from home, it is the 50th anniversary of this landmark in 2021.

Talking about the collaboration Boria Majumdar, Rhodes scholar, journalist and commentator said,” I am thrilled that my books and research will be converted for celluloid by Sanjay and Sarita; producers with vision and commitment to excellence in storytelling. I trust their abilities and believe this is the perfect opportunity to bring Indian sport stories to life onscreen.”

Sanjay Routray said, “Matchbox Movieworks is committed to creating original content that captures Indian stories over time. Boria’s knowledge and understanding of Indian sport is unparalleled and rarely found. We are excited to create stories from his work.”

Sarita Patil added, “Indian sport has a void that should be filled with awe inspiring stories and our nation’s sporting culture. Boria’s books combined with our storytelling skills can create these stories in an engaging and entertaining manner.”

Management Guru and Padma Bhushan 2020 Awardee Dr. Jagdish Sheth Joins UnoLigo Advisory Board

UnoLigo Solutions Pvt Ltd, India’s first Customer Transmigration Platform company is very pleased to announce that Padma Bhushan 2020 Awardee Dr. Jagdish Sheth (Charles H. Kellstadt Professor of Business at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School) will join its advisory board. Dr. Sheth has published more than 200 articles in leading journals and has written a number of books. His most recent book is Genes, Climate, and Consumption Culture. Some other books he has written prior to this include Chindia Rising, The Rule of Three: Surviving and Thriving in Competitive Markets, Clients for Life: How Great Professionals Develop Breakthrough Relationships, Handbook of Relationship Marketing, The Self-Destructive Habits of Good Companies, and The Accidental Scholar.

Speaking to the press, Dr. Sheth pointed out, “I am very excited to join the advisory board of UnoLigo in their journey to evangelize customer transmigration. It is very pertinent for brands and companies to improve on their customer engagement outcomes. UnoLigo and UnoBot have been at the forefront of demonstrating how technology can be leveraged to minimize cultural and social biases we all encounter as customers. It also reduces the risk of political and cultural correctness in their customer engagements. This is implemented across all customer segments, cohorts and micro-markets thus leading to powerful insights and analytics in the process.”

Adds Jehangir Abdullah, Co-Founder of UnoLigo, “We are very excited to have Dr. Jagdish Sheth a pioneer in the field of marketing, customer behavior and customer transmigration join our board. Having Dr. Jagdish on board reinforces our vision and commitment to keeping the customer at the center of customer transmigration.”

Kapil Khandelwal, Director EquNev Capital and popularly known as Father of ‘Quant Offshore Hedge Fund Investing’ in India amongst the Hedge Fund Managers in India and abroad had in January 2020, invested an undisclosed amount in UnoLigo pivoting the knowledge and platforms from its hedge fund EquNev-K1t Capital. Commenting on the development, Khandelwal remarked, “We are fortunate and blessed to have Dr. Sheth on the advisory board of UnoLigo to mentor us to develop and build customer transmigration as a concept in the emerging markets. This also cements my 2-decade old relationship with Dr. Sheth since my Wipro days when he was on its board. Over the last 2 months since our close of investment in UnoLigo, I have personally reached out to over 120 enterprise customers in India and there has been very positive validation on our product strategy and strong acceptance of our product value proposition. UnoLigo, in this short time, has already generated over 30 PoC across various sectors and enterprise segments. Dr. Sheth’s insights have been very powerful in the context of what we are developing on UnoLigo and UnoBot platforms.”

In a recent related story, UnoLigo’s algorithms picked up the gas leak and fire at ONCG terminal in Navi Mumbai a couple of months ago before Mahanagar Gas and Fire Department were officially aware. UnoLigo played a significant role to get a major disaster averted in Navi Mumbai.

Volkswagen India launches its first SUV of 2020, the Tiguan Allspace at INR 33.12 Lakh

March 6, 2020

–    Built on Volkswagen’s renowned MQB platform, the Tiguan Allspace has a longer wheelbase, which creates more space, flexibility and luggage room

–    The premium seven seater Tiguan Allspace is available with 2.0l TSI engine mated to a 7-speed DSG 4MOTION transmission

–    The carline delivers a peak power of 190PS@4200 rpm and a torque of 320Nm@1500-4100rpm (as per EU specifications) while being fuel efficient

–    The Tiguan Allspace provides a luggage compartment volume of 340 litres that can be extended up to 1,274 litres

–    The dashboard and controls of the Tiguan Allspace is characterized by elegant and thoughtfully designed Digital Cockpit and infotainment system’s screen

–    Safety is synonymous with Volkswagen and likewise the Tiguan Allspace comes equipped with 7-airbags, ABS, ESP, tyre pressure monitoring system and more

At an ex-showroom price of INR 33.12 Lakh, the BS6 Tiguan Allspace #FitsAll that an Indian customer needs

Mumbai, 6^th March 2020:– Early this year, Volkswagen India announced ‘Four SUVs for the Indian market in the next two years’. Staying true to its commitment, the brand today launches the globally acclaimed Tiguan Allspace for the Indian market. At an ex-showroom price of INR 33.12 Lakh, the BS6 Tiguan Allspace #FitsAll that an Indian customer needs.

The Tiguan Allspace offers plenty of room for everyone and everything. It’s ergonomic design, roomy interiors, safety features and exceptional build quality makes it an ideal choice for customers. The seven seater premium, versatile and elegant looking carline is available with a power-mill of 2.0l TSI engine mated to a 7-speed DSG 4MOTION transmission. Delivering a peak power of 190PS@4200 rpm and a torque of 320Nm@1500-4100rpm (as per EU specifications) while being fuel efficient.

The long-wheelbase (2,787 mm) of the Tiguan Allspace creates immense flexibility for the occupants, making it a true space giant. It offers extra knee room for rear passengers and plenty of cargo space. With all the seven seats occupied, the Tiguan Allspace provides a luggage compartment volume of 340 litres that can be extended up to 1,274 litres.

Speaking on the launch of the Tiguan Allspace, Mr. Steffen Knapp, Director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars India, “The Tiguan Allspace is one of our most successful carlines globally and we’re extremely delighted to launch the car for our Indian customers. It is the first SUV that is being launched under Volkswagen’s SUV offensive strategy and suits the needs of every Indian customer. It is premium, roomy, versatile, highly functional that #FitsAll. It is equipped with a powerful 2.0l TSI engine and is mated to a 7-speed DSG 4MOTION transmission, which enhances the driving comfort for the customer while being fuel efficient in nature. We’re extremely confident that the sophisticated 7-seater Tiguan Allspace will be a winner among many Indian customers.”

New hood and radiator grille. The Tiguan Allspace is easily recognizable from the front due to its higher bonnet and distinctive front grille. The front of the hood has a different contour and it is also built higher, whereby the chrome applique on the radiator grille have been adapted to blend in with this design change.

Style: The Tiguan Allspace has a significant road presence and style, it is further accentuated by the LED headlamps with DRL, LED ambient lighting and LED tail lamps, striking R18 Alloy wheels and illuminated scuff plates. It also comprises of a panoramic sunroof.

Digital Cockpit: In the Active Info Display, the analogue dial gauges are shown only virtually. Drivers have access to a customized information display that shows additional data on driving dynamics, vehicle status, infotainment and assist functions in the centre area of the speedometer and rev counter.

Connectivity: The Tiguan Allspace is equipped with modern technology that can be used for the convenience of customers in an uncomplicated way. Whether one needs to make a call, navigation and latest traffic information or simply enjoy listening to music while driving. The Tiguan Allspace has it all with AppConnect, which uses MirrorLink™, CarPlay™ (Apple) or Android Auto™ (Google) to link all common smartphone types to the vehicle's infotainment systems.

Park Assist: The Tiguan Allspace not only takes you to your destination, it finishes the job by putting you right into the parking spot. The Park Assist function measures spaces on the side of the street while you drive past. If it finds a suitable parallel or perpendicular space, it takes over the steering to maneuver the vehicle into the spot.

Luggage compartment with “Easy Open” function: Simple to open and close.

the keyless entry with electrically-operated tailgate opening operation, provided you have the key on you, simply takes a flick of the foot under the rear of the vehicle to open the electric tailgate and store in all your luggage.

Safety is synonymous with Volkswagen

·        Airbags: The Tiguan Allspace comprises of 7-airbags and provides the best possible protection in the event any impact

·        Electronic stability Programme (ESP): Prevent the vehicle from being destabilized in extreme conditions

·        Anti-lock braking system (ABS): Prevents wheel block and, thus, maintains

maneuverability

·        Electronic differential lock (EDL): Distributes the engine power to the wheels as required

·        Seat belt warning: If the seat belt is not fastened, the seat belt warning

reminds the driver and occupants to fasten the belt with a visual warning and an acoustic warning after setting off

·        ISOFIX: It is an international standard designed to ensure children's

car seats are installed easily and safely

·        Tyre Pressure Monitoring: Provides tyre pressure information through

instrument panel in the Dashboard from sensors on each wheel

Colour Palette: The Tiguan Allspace is available in 7 colors (just like the 7 seats):

Habanero Orange	Petroleum Blue
Ruby Red	Deep Black Pearl
Platinum Grey	Pure White
Pyrit Silver

Everstone Group’s Sameer Sain and veteran journalist Vir Sanghvi partner to launch Culinary Culture

The platform will be India’s biggest and most definitive voice in the food industry

Highly coveted, precisely rated. Culinary Culture’s Foodstars are the ultimate honour for a restaurant

3 stars l Must try

A very good restaurant that you should dine at while you are in the city

4 stars l Make a special trip

A restaurant that raises the bar of culinary craft – worth visiting even if you have to go out of your way to get there.

5 stars l The very best

One of India’s finest restaurants. The Creme de la eme.

Mumbai, March 3, 2020: The Indian food scene is all set for a transformation with the launch of Culinary Culture that was announced today. Culinary Culture is a platform, modelled along the likes of The Michelin Guide, which aims to be India’s most definitive voice in food and has been launched by Sameer Sain, Founder of Everstone Group and veteran journalist Vir Sanghvi. The platform will rate restaurants in an objective, unbiased manner, recognize achievers in the industry and organise knowledge exchange sessions with globally acclaimed chefs. The launch event was also attended by renowned Chef Gaggan Anand, who is also the Mentor of Culinary Culture and Raaj Sanghvi, CEO, Culinary Culture.

Culinary Culture aims to revolutionize the food space in India as the country’s only authoritative, independent rating organization by awarding Foodstars to restaurants. These Foodstars will be awarded to restaurants through a rigorous and independent multi-channeled process which includes The Academy, an unbiased team of over 40 culinary experts, influential food critics and writers spread across more than 15 cities, full time anonymous Food Referees and a distinguished Jury of some of India’s most acclaimed food personalities. Culinary Culture will also serve as a platform for enrichment by organising global culinary exchanges, bringing the world’s greatest chefs to cook in India and send Indian chefs to cook at the best restaurants in the world. The company has also launched the ‘Street Food Superstars’ initiative which is the first award platform dedicated to street food vendors across India. A special award to recognize chefs in India will also be launched later in the year.

Addressing the gathering during the event, Sameer Sain, Founder, Culinary Culture, said, “We pledge to create a culture that brings India to the world and the world to India. To lead a movement that takes India, the land of a thousand cuisines, to the next level of gastronomic excellence. We have a simple mission: To erase geographical boundaries between Indian and International Chefs and cuisines and enrich both. It’s all about opening out our minds, manners and tables to create a culinary culture that binds us all for the love of food.”

Elaborating on Culinary Culture’s objective outlook, Vir Sanghvi, Chairman, Culinary Culture, added, “Culinary Culture awards stars to restaurants rated by a team of culinary experts. Rigorously judged and uninfluenced by commercial and advertising concerns. Highly coveted, precisely rated. Culinary Culture’s Foodstars are the ultimate honour for a restaurant that’s worth your taste, time and money. Authentic, anonymous, accurate ratings curated by those in the know; for those who deserve to know.

Chef Gaggan Anand, said “The mission is to give unrecognized, underrated and very domestic eateries in India more attention and better opportunities.”

Raaj Sanghvi, CEO, Culinary Culture said, “Part of our mission is to elevate India’s Culinary Culture in a global context. We have the most exciting line-up of chefs visiting India and will present World No.1 Mauro Colagreco from Mirazur in Mumbai later this week followed by other Three Michelin starred chefs like Julien Royer and Gert De Mangeleer. But what excites me most, is taking some of India’s most talented young chefs abroad for Culinary Exchanges at some of the world’s best restaurants. This has never been done before and is just the beginning.”

Culinary Culture will present Italian-Argentinian chef Mauro Colagreco from the acclaimed Three Michelin starred Mirazur, rated as The World’s Best Restaurant in Mumbai this week. Chef Mauro Colagreco will be recreating his award-winning restaurant Mirazur with two special dinners at St. Regis Hotel on March 6 and 8, 2020.

Kia Motors India achieves its highest ever sales in February 2020, selling 15,644 units

·       Kia enters top 3 car manufacturer in the country

·       The brand delivered 14,024 units of Seltos and 1,620 units of Carnival

·       For a second consecutive month, Seltos becomes the highest selling SUV in India

New Delhi, March 02, 2020: Kia Motors India, country’s youngest automobile manufacturer, registered record-high sales of 15,644 units for the month of February 2020, becoming third largest car manufacturer in the country. While Seltos continues to dominate the SUV segment in India with 14,024 units, the newly launched Carnival also witnessed a strong customer response with 1,620 unit sales. While the overall sales of passenger vehicles in February 2020 declined by 4.4% in comparison to January 2020, Kia Motors India witnessed a growth of 1.3%.

Commenting on the record sales registered by Kia, Mr. Kookhyun Shim, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Kia Motors India said, “I am extremely delighted with the response and acceptance Indian customers have given us. Our latest offering the Carnival has been received well and this has helped adding to our sales numbers.This not only testifies the quality, reliability and design prowess of our vehicles, but also gives a hint that India is evolving and Indian customers now don’t just settle but opt for better product offerings. It’s a proud moment for all of us at Kia Motors India who have worked diligently to achieve this feat. With upcoming new compact SUV, Sonet launch slated for the second half of the year, I am confident that we will continue to carry this momentum through-out this year.

Kia Motors India had a remarkable month as it received great appreciation at the Auto Expo 2020 for its exciting product showcase. Kia globally unveiled its compact SUV concept ‘Sonet’ and launched its luxurious and premium MPV – Carnival at the Expo, which mesmerised the show-goers. Building further on its commitment of ‘Power to Surprise’ Kia will be launching Sonet later this year with many first-in-class features, specially crafted for the Indian consumers.

Mumbai-bred singer-songwriter Sooraj releases music video ‘The Actor,’ set in the glitz of Hollywood.

The Mumbai-bred Singer and Songwriter Sooraj Bishnoi has released new song 'The Actor'. The press brief is here with this email and the press release is also attached. Please find it attached and do give courage in your esteemed media.  

“Moving through the masquerade, I just want to see your face,” pleads Sooraj in his newest music video for his song ‘The Actor.’ In the video, Sooraj tells the classic tale of a young artist with big dreams in the unforgiving world of Hollywood – with a twist.

After releasing his 11-song album titled ‘Here We Go,’ Sooraj is now working on bringing those songs to life on the screen with a series of music videos. ‘The Actor,’ he says, is the first of more videos that he has planned. 

Sooraj recently graduated from Musician’s Institute, Hollywood with a degree in vocal performance but has been playing the keyboards since age one and a half, passing his Trinity College Grade 8 keyboard exam at age six, and playing multiple instruments such as the guitar, drums, bass while combining them all into music production. His other music videos for the songs ‘Nemesis’ and ‘City Beat’ raked up over 60,000 and 150,000 views on YouTube respectively, while he performed his songs from the album both in the US and in India. He is also a private pilot, and has in fact shot an aerial scene for the music video from the flight deck of a small aircraft.

The video, shot by LA-based filmmaker Jonas Gaida is a reflection on Sooraj’s own stories and observations of the Hollywood glitz and what goes on behind the scenes. “The song is about people who start out with stars in their eyes and end up pushed to the ground by the world around them. It was inspired by true-life stories of people being forced to warp their original identity and aspirations by the big bad world who wants them to be someone they aren’t.” With a smile, he adds, “I walk on the Hollywood Walk of Fame every day and all I step on are pink stars on the boulevard. I thought to myself, is this the pinnacle of fame – to have a star on the boulevard and have people walk over you? That was what sparked the writing of this song.”

‘The Actor’ can be found on YouTube, Facebook and Instagram, and the song is available to stream as part of Sooraj’s album ‘Here We Go,’ on all major platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, Saavn and Amazon Play.

Royal Enfield Sales Update - February 2020

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Monthly Update - February 2020

Sales performance

Royal Enfield posted sales of 63,536 motorcycles in the month of February 2020, against the sales of 62,630 motorcycles for the same month last year.

MOTORCYCLES SALES	February			YTD
	2020	2019	Growth		2019'20	Growth
Domestic	61,188	60,066	2%	6,24,020	7,46,839	-16%
Exports	2,348	2,564	-8%	36,004	18,428	95%
Total	63,536	62,630	1%	6,60,024	7,65,267	-14%

Business Update

Royal Enfield announced its unaudited consolidated financial results for the quarter ended 31st  December, 2019

Royal Enfield sold 189,143 motorcycles in the quarter, a decline of 2% from 193,164 motorcycles sold over the same period in the last financial year. Royal Enfield continues to strengthen its distribution network in India and across the world. During the last quarter, Royal Enfield added 7 new large format stores and 250 new Studio Format stores in India, taking the total to 1,400 retail touchpoints. In international markets, Royal Enfield added new stores across Thailand, Brazil, Argentina, France and the UK, increasing its overall touchpoints to about 675 stores including 67 exclusive stores. This network expansion, combined with sustained Brand and Marketing initiatives, have more than tripled sales outside India.

Rides and Events

Unroad Maharashtra

The concept of Unroad is tailor made to impart technical knowledge of riding in off-road terrains as well as get hands on experience to tackle daunting tracks and trails in the pursuit of adventure. This year, the event was held from 5th to 9th February 2020 introducing riders to something more than touring on highways and nudges them to explore the lesser known and accessible parts of the countryside. Unroad also helps the rider understand the versatility of his motorcycle and its capability to tackle challenging terrain, thereby inspiring confidence in a rider to initiate exploration in one’s own backyard.

Scramble Karnataka

Scramble Karnataka 2020 at Big Rock, Bengaluru - a weekend full of off-roading, upbeat music and camping! This event took place on 1st and 2nd February 2020 and gave an opportunity for enthusiasts for a combination of daring off-road events paired with a sun-downer with fellow Royal Enfield community members. What makes this event even more lively and unmissable is the inclusion of energizing music, and attention grabbing motorcycling events, specially curated to give you an eccentric riding experience. Scramble is a fun off-road centric event which will combine trail riding, dirt track, and a trials course into a one-day competitive activity. The participants will be judged on their overall performance in challenges which are designed to let everybody put their guard down and enjoy.

White Out 2020

White Out, which took place from 20th to 29th February, is all about exploring the next level riding on extreme terrains, challenging the grit of the rider as well as machine in the midst of mystical snow-capped Himalaya. The ride is designed for extreme terrain with snow covered tracks and extreme temperature. A team of 11 highly skilled riders embarked on this nine day trying, testing and thrilling adventure. For 9 days, they faced freezing blizzards, snowfall, primitive living conditions and roads topped with deceptive black-ice made the second edition of Royal Enfield Whiteout a test of the toughest minds and bodies.