Talk to anyone in Motown India, and the story you hear will mostly be of gloom — of tough times and impending layoffs. But on the 10th floor of the swanky new Milestone Experion Centre in Gurgaon, the office of MG Motor , the mood is upbeat. A subsidiary of the $128 billion Chinese giant Shanghai Auto Industrial Corporation (SAIC), it is busy plotting an aggressive growth path in India. Furniture is still being unwrapped. Conference rooms are buzzing with meetings. In one of them, the launch strategy of an electric vehicle (EV) later this year is being crafted.Imagine, with 28,000 bookings, MG Motor has had to temporarily close down bookings for its Hector SUV in 2019 — this, in a shrinking market. Its 46,000 sq ft office space — bought for Rs 150 crore — signals the ambitions SAIC has in the Indian market. Its journey began in 2017 when it bought General Motors ’ Halol plant in Gujarat when the latter exited India’s domestic market. Since then, SAIC has been quietly giving shape to its India journey with Rajeev Chaba as managing director. In India, most auto MNCs have struggled as Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai Motor lord over Indian roads, with close to 70% market share.Unsurprisingly, many are sceptical about the fate of late entrants like Kia Motors and MG Motor. However, for four reasons, MG Motor’s Indian journey should be closely watched. One, it marks the debut of Motown China, the world’s largest car market, in India. Two, the Chinese, having gained confidence at home, are now readying to conquer the world amid slowing sales — and India will be an important playground. Three, auto MNCs have struggled to break the stranglehold of Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai in India, price being an important barrier. Expect Chinese carmakers such as SAIC to fight the price war a lot better, just like players like Xiaomi in the handset industry. Finally, as India bets on EVs, it will be advantage China, already a global leader in the technology.In an interview with ET, Chaba talks about SAIC, its India drive and the road ahead. Edited excerpts:SAIC wants MG Motor to be a great MNC, not a Chinese company. MG Motor is a British brand with Chinese ownership. This shows in many ways — in simple things like me, a non-Chinese, heading the company. Our purchase head is Indian. Of the 1,200 employees, there are only 20 Chinese executives. We want MG Motor to be a good MNC embracing good corporate practices. We are here for the long term. We have bought, not leased, this office, investing Rs 150 crore in it. The vibe is very different. You will see people in smart casuals. We don’t want to be stuck up, with too many dos and don’ts. We are trying to build a very different culture, more like a startup culture.India is a challenging market. Maruti and Hyundai maintain a strong grip and MNCs have struggled. We are here to disrupt. The question we asked ourselves is, can we disrupt the market and what can we do differently to do it? It is too early to celebrate but we could not have been in a better position with 28,000 bookings and all sold out for 2019 in a bad market. Today, our dealers are the happiest. This did not happen by accident. Our biggest challenge now is to meet customer expectations.By 2022, we hope to have five products here and invest Rs 5,000 crore. With our e-vehicle EZS scheduled for launch, we want to pitch ourselves as an innovative MNC. Our strategy is built on three pillars — good employees, culture and dealer viability. For example, we will never talk about wholesale numbers (that the industry reports), but retail sales. We will have only one dealer per city, except in NCR and Mumbai. Our deal with dealers is: your profitability is our responsibility and you take care of customers. Here’s what our 10-year plan broadly looks like. We see the next three-four years as the foundation years where we build our brand and presence while furthering localisation. Launch of an EV is part of that strategy. In the next three-four years, we will focus on controlling other levers like products and cost efficiencies. In the last phase, we will ramp up to build serious volumes.Motown China, the global leader in auto industry, including electric vehicles, is eyeing India. SAIC’s MG Motor enters the fray. Here are five reasons to keep a close watch:They have empowered us substantially. Before I joined, they had decided on their launch product — a hatchback. The sub-Rs 5 lakh is the largest car segment in India. But I questioned that strategy. At that time, XUV500 was the only model in that segment. Thanks to learnings from GM, I said let’s not look at the volume segment. Let’s get our fundamentals right, build consumer and product experience and establish the MG brand. This will allow us to keep volume and profitability pressures away. They listened. So Hector SUV is our debut vehicle.Let me give you another example. They designed a car with a grille that I wasn’t very happy with and I wanted to change. They listened to me and reverted with three alternatives within two weeks. I can’t imagine GM or any German or Japanese company agreeing to this and reverting, forget two weeks, even in two years. That’s how fast they move.The toughest part of my job has been to get the best talent. So, you pay more to attract them. Our employee pitch is that we are part of the disruption story. As an automobile company, we want to think differently. We are actively hiring people from outside auto sector as well as we realise that they will look at things in a new way. Gender diversity is important. At our plant, 31% of workers are women. We are trying to engage with startups, too, to build an ecosystem around connected cars.The bosses in China are clear about what they want: a global team with a global work culture here. Unlike the western MNCs, sometimes they may not have the exposure. The language also makes things more difficult. But they are learning fast.When I began talking to SAIC for this role, I had a few things on my wish list. Empowerment was one. I was clear that I will not do political management of the bosses. I report to the SAIC president. He reviews the business every month. The Chinese are hungry for success. They listen to the local market and offer HQ support that we need. They take time to trust you. But once they do, the good news is that they listen and don’t second-guess you.In the US, the whole thing is governed by the Wall Street. It is all about individual shame and achievements. There is a big on quarter-on-quarter performance. This often means lack patience. At the cost of long term, you are focused on short term. India is a tough market. You need to first sow seeds, have patience and think long term before you can show results. Also, the auto industry today requires a lot of investment on future tech. Prioritisation becomes critical. India is a market with slim margins. So, companies need to make up their minds on whether they want to compete here and what they are seeking. You need a very clear strategy to crack open the market. While Asian companies, including Chinese, may not look sexy in the job market, they are more patient, committed and have a very strategic market view. The strategy is never individual-focused where things change with the boss. They are more institution-led.India is very important as success here will open avenues in other emerging markets. This is a tough market; if you can deliver here you can easily move up the value chain in other markets. While global sales are now small (2.8 lakh in 2018), by 2025 we hope to have one million car sales overseas. India is the fifth largest global auto market. Returns may be rewarding if you get things right.The biggest is their hunger. For western MNCs, India may be important but my gut feeling is that for the Chinese, it is very, very important. Amid the US-China trade war, they want to accelerate their global expansion and figure how they can be relevant. With their lead on EV technology, they are also future-ready. So while GM and Ford are busy protecting their own turfs, Chinese firms are seeking global growth. Their work ethic and execution are fantastic. If the top executive takes a decision, the execution is swift. We set up our plant in 15 months. They are champions in engineering and production with unbeatable cost structures.Everything begins with the leadership. GM India was very headquarters-driven, with little empowerment here. Also, the leadership kept changing. Right product strategy and stability at the top are very important.We will bring in MG EZS soon. Right now we are not able to crack the Rs 5-10 lakh market. Unless one has a good meaningful solution in that segment, EVs won't work here. We require government support like building charging infrastructure etc. Leaving it to OEMs entirely will not work.I am a fitness freak. I did half-marathon and will do it again in October. Between yoga, squash, run and weekend golf, I spend about an hour every to keep myself fit. I just can't afford to fall (laughs). Thanks to my kids, who are fitness freaks, I eat healthy. I learn a lot from them, about technology and how to manage millennials. I have got a good set of friends, all from my IIM days. We often watch movies together.