Frame by Frame, Indian Animators Move Up the Value Chain
In April 2010, the box-office fate of the first animated Hollywood film to be produced by an Indian company -- Crest Animation's Alpha and Omega -- could well define how the world looks at Indian animators. According to a report by Nasscom and Ernst & Young, the Indian animation industry generates annual revenues of US$400 million to US$500 million, and is poised to cross US$1 billion by 2012. Long viewed as service providers for established film companies, studios like Crest are now moving into pre- and post-production work that could help establish India as a global animation hub. Along the way, experts say, the industry will need to adapt its artistic sensibilities to a more global audience and invest heavily in educating the next generation of animators.

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Growing MindTree: Can Added Services and a 'Gardener' Help the IT Firm Reach New Heights?
When Bangalore-based information technology (IT) firm MindTree began operations in August 1999, some investors believed it had the potential to be a US$1 billion company in 10 years. Today, the company is nowhere near that figure, projecting US$290 million to US$300 million in revenues for the current year. While some view MindTree as not having lived up to its potential, others say the company is poised to become a major player in India's IT industry through the addition of new businesses and its innovative approach to leadership, which includes an official "gardener" focused on developing its executives.

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Billiards Champion Geet Sethi: 'By the Next Olympics, We Will Win Five Golds'
India's emergence as an economic leader in such areas as computer software is giving it confidence to take on new challenges, including in sports. "We ... want the status of being recognized as a power in sports, too," notes Geet Sethi, who has won dozens of professional world-class championships and set world records in billiards and snooker. In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, Sethi discusses the foundation being laid by India -- physically and psychologically -- to reach new levels of success in sporting competitions. Sethi is also the author of Success vs. Joy and a founder of Olympic Gold Quest, a non-government organization that funds India's Olympic medal hopefuls.

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Providence Equity's Gaurav Sharma: 'Private Equity Is Now a More Mature Market'
In the world of private equity, Providence Equity Partners is a specialist. The firm, whose headquarters are in Providence, R.I., specializes in deals involving media, entertainment, information and communications companies. In 2007, Providence Equity opened its New Delhi office, headed by Biswajit (Bis) Subramanian, who had earlier been a managing director in the firm's London office. By mid 2008, Providence Equity had invested more than US$1 billion in Idea Cellular, which, according to media reports, was among the largest private equity investments in India's telecom sector. What is Providence Equity Partners' strategy for India? How has it changed as a result of the global financial crisis? In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, Gaurav Sharma, who works with Subramanian on defining and executing Providence Equity Partners' India strategy, discusses those questions and more.

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Indian IT Plugs into a Growing Market of Small and Midsize Enterprises
Despite the economic slowdown, the potential of India's vast sector of small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) has caught the attention of the country's information technology players. Increasing domestic and global competition, a rise in partnerships with larger firms and government initiatives to increase IT awareness among SMEs are motivating smaller companies to beef up their IT processes. But in order to tap into this potentially enormous market, IT firms will need to move away from "one size fits all" products and develop networks of sales partners who can tackle the segment's geographic spread and effectively communicate the benefits of adopting IT among smaller companies, many of which don't own a single PC.

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Why Companies See Bright Prospects in Rural India
Economists were surprised when India's GDP growth in the first three months of 2009 was higher than expected, largely because of strong performance by the agriculture sector. While urban demand is depressed because of the global downturn, rural markets are growing -- and companies are taking notice. Strategies to provide services like banking and products such as cars, gold jewelry and shampoo are being reshaped by the rush to cater to rural demand. As one expert told India Knowledge@Wharton, rural India is forcing marketers to rethink the traditional four P's of marketing -- product, price, place and promotion -- and replace them with four A's: Affordability, awareness, availability and acceptability.

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