I am a master in India

Chapter 401 Market
"You've really gotten to be capable now!"

"Ron Baba, that was just a tiny, insignificant attempt."

"What, you want to play it big?"

"It's hard to find older people, and it's even harder to find those willing to appear on camera."

"Get out!" Ron kicked him angrily.

Anand chuckled and didn't dodge. Only when his toes landed on his legs did he grin and cooperate with the performance.

“Let me ask you first, have you done anything to hurt anyone?” Ron’s expression turned serious.

“Ron Baba, you know me. I’ve never intentionally hurt anyone, and I’ve always wanted to be a good person.”

"That Happy Bean Film Company..."

“That’s the property of the New Federation. I’m just helping them introduce business and taking a cut.”

"Really?"

"Well, I occasionally participate in casting calls, but I absolutely never force anyone to do anything wrong. On the contrary, the ladies are very grateful to me!"

"Ok?"

"Ron Baba, they are actually very pitiful. Most of them are rural girls from underdeveloped areas who can't find other jobs and have no choice but to do this kind of business. But Indian men have bad tempers and will beat them, especially after they've been drinking. Sometimes they don't even get paid and work for free."

Filming a movie in Mumbai would earn them at least tens of thousands of rupees, enough to save for many years. No, they actually can't save any money because Mumbai is a money pit; even drinking water costs several rupees.

After filming the movie, they received several years' worth of hard-earned money in one lump sum. Some of the girls bought train tickets the very next day and went back to their hometowns. They had saved enough for their dowries to return and have a grand wedding.

Ron listened in silence. The limits of this country often shatter your imagination time and time again.

"Did anyone buy those CDs? And where did they end up?" he asked.

“There are so many people buying them, more than you can imagine. You know what? Ron Baba, sometimes a CD can sell a million copies in Mumbai in just one week after it’s released.”

"so much?"

"It's even more popular than Bollywood. If a hotel doesn't have new products, it will be looked down upon by its guests."

"So they were all sold to hotels?"

"No, that's only a part. Individuals buy the most, especially white-collar workers in office buildings. Don't be fooled by their well-dressed appearances; they're involved in all sorts of shady dealings behind the scenes. And then there are video arcades—I dare say they're the greatest invention of the new India!"

"Is this thing really popular right now?"

“Ron Baba, you can’t stay in Malabar Hill forever. Video arcades are the most profitable business on the street now. Just a few discs playing non-stop will bring in a steady stream of ticket revenue. Mumbai has too many people, more than 16 million, there’s never a shortage of business.”

Opening a video rental store doesn't require a large investment; just a few VCD players and a TV. However, you need a complete selection of discs—Bollywood, Hollywood, European, and popular films.
With these in place, all you have to do is wait for customers to come to you.

The amazing thing is that no matter how remote your video arcade is, people will always find it. They spread the word by word, but always keep a low profile.

So what appears to be a deserted storefront is often actually a large room full of people inside.

Rich people buy VCDs and DVDs to watch at home, while those without money can just pay a few rupees for a ticket and still have a great afternoon.

Happy Bean Studio has only been established for a few months, but its development momentum is stronger than many companies in Bollywood.

The demand was so high that even poorly made, low-quality CDs could sell millions of copies.

Anand made a fortune just from the commissions alone.

"Is the film studio now under Johnny and his team's management?"

"Yes, Ron Baba. I was just helping them with casting and offering suggestions on the plot. I definitely didn't embarrass you!"

"You can even create storylines?" Ron asked, quite surprised.

"I'm experienced...cough, I've heard a lot of stories. Like TV repairmen, plumbers, old doormen, high school students with poor grades..."

"Stop, stop, stop! What nonsense are you spouting?" Ron interrupted him dismissively.

"In short, there are many stories that happen in this city, and they are all very exciting, some of which will leave you speechless. These kinds of movies are very easy to make; they don't require location shooting or acting skills, you can just act naturally."

“Be careful, Shiva’s army might cause you trouble,” Ron warned him.

“That’s the New Federation’s business, and you can’t stop them, Ron Baba.”

"what?"

“Happy Bean Media is no longer the only studio making this kind of film. The entire Mumbai gangs are in an uproar, and they've seen it all.”

Anand was most aware of this, as unnamed DVDs, also locally produced, had begun to appear in those small video arcades.

This business is incredibly profitable, far beyond anyone's imagination.

If the production volume is large enough, the cost of pressing a single CD is less than 5 rupees.

If you take it to the street to sell, it will be snapped up for 20 rupees each; there is a complete shortage of supply.

It's more popular than movies because you can watch it repeatedly whenever you need to.

It's also cheaper than videotapes costing hundreds of rupees, not to mention restricted movie copies that cost as much as five hundred rupees.

Johnny and his crew sold these things like hotcakes back then, so there's no reason why cheaper CDs wouldn't be popular.

The most ingenious thing is that the new federation has now transformed into a production company, and all the profits from upstream and downstream operations are in their hands.

Mumbai has so many gangs; when it comes to shady businesses, there are no secrets.

So, following suit, they all started setting up film studios.

They even openly promoted it, as if they had cleaned up their act overnight.

I wonder how many girls dreaming of becoming stars this trend will ruin. But this is Mumbai, where countless sordid things happen every day; the whole country is a breeding ground for crime.

"Video parlors can't all be showing R-rated movies, and what about those street restaurants? What do they show?"

“Of course it’s pirated CDs.” Anand shook his head.

"Also the new federation?"

"They are a part of it, and the most enthusiastic are the street vendors. Ron Baba, you know, as long as you buy a CD burner, you can produce pirated discs endlessly."

Blank CDs from Southeast Asia are very cheap, only one or two rupees each, and they're shipped here in whole boatloads.

Vendors can easily sell a burned copy of a Bollywood movie for 5-6 rupees. That's much more profitable than selling pagans, a lot more profitable!

With a profit of three or four rupees and no worries about selling, capable small merchants have long been making a fortune.

Nobody cares about copyright issues; India's brutal business environment will shatter any calls for standardization.

Red-light districts, gangs, small business owners, video arcades, street shops, customers... these factors were all interconnected, giving rise to a booming VCD market.

Suer Electric was one of the beneficiaries, and Ron did not interfere with the New Federation's actions.

He was simply warning Anand not to get into trouble.

Shiva's army, the police, Bollywood film companies—who knows when they'll raise their big sticks against this industry?

Ron doesn't need to get involved in the piracy market; he can just observe and wait.

Of course, it's okay to occasionally introduce them to the CD pressing plant at the University of Tokyo, or Japanese CD burners.

The rest is up to the market. Judging from the VCD sales in the past few months, the era of mass entertainment is an inevitable trend.

This year, Suer Electric will also launch small items such as speakers, microphones, and cameras.

Sales were so-so, but we didn't lose money either; we just considered it as accumulating development experience.

Taking all these products into account, Suer Electric's current monthly net profit is approximately 95 billion rupees.

With his cement plant and other businesses, Ron has a cash flow of 400 billion.

Of the $25 billion in overseas accounts, more than $5 million was used to fund port development and shipping companies in Odisha.

The 100-acre technology park in Mumbai also requires a total investment of around $3 million.

Furthermore, the ports of Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat in the future will basically follow the example of Nnor Port.

Once all these major projects were removed, his personal savings were reduced to only $6 million.

That's not all; five-star hotels in other cities are still in the planning stages, and who knows how much they'll cost.

The power plant also needs to expand, and the cement plant in Danbad is still under construction—it's all money at stake.

Oh, by the way, cell phone signal base stations are currently only being piloted in Mumbai.

The thought of future coverage across all of India sent chills down Ron's spine.

$6 million, plus 400 billion rupees in cash flow, might not even be enough.

He runs all physical businesses, which require large investments to yield large returns.

Well, real estate development is also considered a physical entity.

Unfortunately, we are currently in the midst of a financial crisis, and Indian banks have tightened their lending policies across the board.

Ron had to pay for most of the ports and hotels himself.

He could also wait a year or two, until the aftermath of the financial crisis subsided, before applying for a bank loan.

It was too late; it was already the year 2000. Indian hot money was soaring, and all industries began to accelerate their development.

True oligarchs are those who have already secured their positions before the opportune moment arrives.

Ron was in a rush. He attended several meetings at Suer Electric and then rushed off to India Mobile.

It was a five-story office building in southern Mumbai, which he rented entirely.

The largest group here is customer service, with over 300 employees.

They sit in the paging center all day, forwarding messages to the corresponding pagers based on incoming call requests.

Thanks to the booming sales of Suhr pagers, India Mobile now has more than 500,000 users, and is growing by tens of thousands every month.

Despite their low price, pagers are currently India Mobile's most profitable business.

The monthly rent of just twenty or thirty rupees can guarantee the company tens of millions in operating income.

Leaving aside the initial hardware investment, the salaries and operating costs of hundreds of employees all depend on this business.

As for mobile phone users, they are pitifully few.

The entire population of Mumbai is only around 2, with an average monthly rent of 600 rupees and a monthly turnover of around 1200 million.

They can barely keep a few hundred base stations running, and they're still far from meeting the $600 million license fee.

Mobile phone users, however, have a very high opinion of India Mobile, as they can get a signal in most areas of Mumbai.

It's not that it's particularly smooth, but compared to state-owned telecom companies, India Mobile is more reliable and convenient.

Thanks to the contrast with its peers, its reputation has already spread among the wealthy.

Ron had intended to chat with the engineers at the University of Tokyo, but a call came from New Delhi, and he immediately set off again.

(End of this chapter)