Theme based housing picking up pace in the Indian real estate. Rajeeb Dash, marketing head, Tata Housing Development Co. Ltd., speaks about why theme based projects are popular among the Indian buyers and what makes them sell. He spoke to Sruthi Kailas of MagicBricks.com Bureauon the various theme based projects by Tata Housing and the future of the same in India

The trend for theme based project picking up in India? Why?

At present lot of people from in India are travelling abroad. Consumers are increasingly becoming aware about the western culture and the markets in developed countries. And since, theme based projects stand out in the clutter, we feel that it is time to communicate something different to our knowledgeable customers. However, the theme of the project should be in sync with the location. For example, Tata Housing is doing theme-based projects in Gurgaon, Talegaon, and Lonavala. So the critical factor is that the theme has to go with the location and the product that you are offering. Thus theme based projects are a way to differentiate our offerings.

Do you think that theme based projects are just another marketing strategy used by developers to differentiate their projects?

Exactly, it is a marketing strategy to differentiate the product and also to offer something different. When I say that it is a marketing strategy, it is not just the packaging. If I have to put it in the FMCG way marketing strategy it includes advertising and packaging. But here it is not just about advertising and packaging but also the product. In this case the product itself is very different and it is not just a marketing gimmick to lure customers.

Are buyers keen on such products, as these are usually high priced?

Theme based projects are not always high-end. Generally when we do a theme based project people have a perception that is a high end product. Theme based projects are also for the middle income group. Developing a theme based project does not cost more than any usual project. Theme based development does not add to cost that much. It may add to 5 or 10 per cent of the usual cost but not more. However, it works as a differentiator and gives much more value to the property. For instance, our project Prive in Lonavala is a premium theme based project while La Montana in Talegaon is an affordable theme based project.

What kind of demand are you witnessing for these projects?

There is a huge demand for these projects as there is a novelty values attached to them. People are showing a lot of interest and we witnessed this when we launched our project Raisina Residency in Delhi. It even sold faster due to the theme. Similar trends were observed for our project in Talegaon.

What is future of theme based projects in Indian real estate?

Theme based projects are still very new in India. There are very few theme based projects in India at present. Thus there is a lot of potential for these projects because it has never happened in India. It will grow tremendously in the future. In the last five years I have seen sales of our theme based projects pick up continuously.