<p>Tata is one of the oldest names in Indian automotive manufacturing business and earlier was called TELCO. Mainly dealer with commercial vehicles, it was known for its Trucks and Buses, not cars. Is&rsquo;s first attempt in car manufacturing was with Sierra which was quickly followed by Estate and Sumo. Although Sierra still has a cult fan following and Sumo in subsequent generation is still on sale, Estate could not meet with success. Nevertheless, these products laid a solid foundation for Tata to move forward in car manufacturing. In 1998, Tata stunned the World with Indica, a car from which Ratan Tata himself had high hopes from. He wanted to have a car which was as spacious as Ambassador, safe and cost not more than Maruti Zen, and delivered the same. Indica, a car completely designed indigenously in India, found instant success and gave the competition sleepless nights. Later, Tata came out with Nano, the cheapest car in the world and again a brain child of Ratan Tata who wanted to have a car that can be afforded by an Indian moving his family on a bike. Political circumstances did not allow Nano to live upto its full potential, but again Tata proved its mettle. It also was the first one to bring the concept of &ldquo;Compact Sedan&rdquo; which was later on followed by other majors like Maruti Suzuki, Honda and Hyundai. Safari, which was also unviled along with Indian in 1998, has a very loyal and cult following in India. It even came to be known as &ldquo;Poor man&rsquo;s Pajero&rdquo; and as a product Safari still offers one of the best rear seats in its segment. Contemporary launches like Zest met with limited success, but they do represent the brand&rsquo;s increasing focus on much required Quality Control and Fit and Finish. Recent launches have indicated massive improvements as far manufacturing goes. Tata needs to look into its dealer and service network. The product range, specially the cars in small and mid size cars are well built (and Tata has a habit of lavishly using steel which results into heavier product, but a strong chassis) offering good value for what is asking price. Ratan Tata managed to redefine the brand as a passenger car vehicle and with recent improvements along with lined up launches, Tata seems to have done its homework well since its Indica days. It must also be mentioned that it was also the sponsor for Narian Kartekain, India&rsquo;s First F1 driver. Tata has made India proud. Just to highlight Ratan Tata&rsquo;s patriotism, he once refused to sell armored Sumo to Pakistan Army. Under his leadership, Tata took over world renowned British Luxury brands Jaguar and Land Rover. This acquisition move stunned the world, and was a very pleasant moment for India. For its future launches, it has singed Lionel Messi as a brand ambassador.</p>
