No to Nano

Class-conscious car owners are saying...

It's reverse snobbery at its best. The Tata Nano's USP its low price is expected to put the car within the reach of the common man, but the same factor has turned off many car buyers.

Mumbaikars, conscious of their social status, are refusing to be seen anywhere near a Nano. Scoffed a Colaba resident, "Why will I buy a car that every cyclewallah will also have? I would end up being identified in the same social strata."

Till bookings closed on April 25, 11 lakh people had booked the Nano. One of them was Maruti Bhandare, a cobbler from Mulund. As one Skoda owner, who wished to remain anonymous put it, "Imagine what it will do to my status to buy a Nano which even a cobbler can afford."

Jilani Motorwala, who owns an automobile service station, admitted that he would not buy the Nano. "The Nano is too small for my family, but more importantly, it will affect my social status. I had bought a Maruti Versa in 2001. Sadly now, we have Versa taxis. I feel it has cheapened the car in a way."

Not good enough

It seems the Nano is just not upmarket enough for Mumbaikars. S Kapadia of Peddar Road stated clearly, "The Nano is cute, but I would prefer a more upmarket car." Then there are those who feel the Nano is only for those who cannot go in for the more expensive cars in the market. As Ranjiv Ramchandani, who lives in Colaba said, "I would not buy the Nano, as I can afford better cars." Agreed Adil Gandhy from Bandra, "I do not wish to sound snobbishu00a0 but I will certainly not buy the Nano. It is good for families who commute on bikes, especially the four-to-a-bike ones that is so dangerous."

Deepak Kapadia, former president, Western India Automobile Association (WIAA), has more faith in Mumbaikars. According to Kapadia, "People might think that the Nano adversely affects their status. But once they see Ratan Tata travel in one, all such notions will disappear."

Brand identity
According to Ruby Pavri, psychology lecturer at St Xavier's College, "People tend to identify themselves with their possessions. So, they think that the Nano would affect their social status."

She added, "After all, we do live in an age where school children often tell their parents to buy the top-of-the-line cellphones, as they feel a simple phone can make them inferior in the eyes of their friends."