PALM SOUND & LIGHT AWARDS
OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION TO THE PRO AUDIO INDUSTRY
Honouring the Legacy
This year PALM + AV-ICN is honouring the AHUJA FAMILY for their Leadership of over Eight Decades in
the Pro Audio Industry with the Lifetime Contribution to The Pro Audio Industry Award at the PALM
Sound & Light awards. This award recognizes over Eighty Years of innovation, quality & reliability
of brand AHUJA in meeting the demands of Pro Audio products in India. This award acknowledges their
commitment to creating a manufacturing and distribution infrastructure that persistently delivers an
Indian product to the Indian market at affordable prices. In this interview with Sandeep Ahuja, Sr.
Vice President of Ahuja Radios talks about the Ahuja legacy in the Pro audio industry and unveils
the company's visionary plans for the future.
Glimpse of One of The Plants at Noida, U.P.
Q. What are the highlights of Ahuja Family's eventful journey and progress points in the Indian
market? Please elaborate on some defining milestones.
A. Ahuja Radios owes its inception to the visionary zeal and courageous initiative of its founder
A.N. Ahuja, who in 1940 espoused and championed the philosophy and concept of "Atmanirbharta" or
self-reliance, which has become a buzz-word only today. He started manufacturing PA products under
the AHUJA brand. Ever since the AHUJA Group has progressed continuously achieving one milestone
after another. First, an important milestone in this long and glorious journey was when Ahuja Radios
started exports in the year 1952 to Burma followed by exports to South-East Asia, Middle-East and
Africa. Foreseeing a bright future for Ahuja Public Address equipment in India, a larger factory was
commissioned in 1958 in Okhla Industrial Estate, New Delhi, which was inaugurated by the then Prime
Minister Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru.
Ahuja exports gained momentum in 1973 with forays into developed European markets like Switzerland,
Germany, the UK, Netherlands etc. Today, the exports span over 45 counties across 5 continents. R&D
has always been an area of strength since the 1950s keeping pace with the developments in the Audio
industry around the world like the introduction of the first Stereophonic Amplifier in India in the
year 1960. It was in 1976 that the Ahuja R&D department was recognized by the Department of Science
& Technology, Govt. of India.
In 1977, Ahuja set up a manufacturing facility in SEEPZ (Mumbai) followed by an expansion in
manufacturing facilities in Noida, U.P. in the year 1984. Since the early 1990s, Ahuja has been
receiving awards for outstanding Exports Performance as well as the National Quality Award in 2006
by Govt. of India. Another proud moment for Ahuja came in the year 2013 when like all previous
editions, Ahuja amplifiers & speakers were installed for public address at World's largest human
congregation - MAHA KUMBH MELA, Allahabad attended by 100 million devotees. 4800 Ahuja speakers
spanning 58 sq. km. the area worked trouble-free for 55 consecutive days. Ahuja products were
installed at Delhi & Lucknow Metro in 2016. Similar success was replicated thereafter in other Metro
networks across the country. Ahuja completed 80 Years of service to the Public Address & Pro Audio
industry in the year 2020 and is poised to take giant strides into the future.
Senior AHUJA Management Team (L TO R) Vikram Ahuja-Vice President, N S Ahuja - President, Sandeep
Ahuja - Sr. Vice President and Arjun Ahuja - Vice President
Q. Tell us about Ahuja R&D and manufacturing in India?
A. As highlighted above Ahuja has always had a strong R&D set-up and highly-skilled engineers and
technicians who are responsible for developing products and keeping abreast with evolving needs of
the Pro Audio & PA users. Transitioning from Valve-based amplification to Semiconductor technology,
and from Record Changers, Reel type Tape-Recorders, and Cassette Recorders, to Digital Players,
AHUJA R&D has always been proactively introducing new technologies in the products. The current
Ahuja range covers around 400 reliable products for discerning public addresses or Professional
Sound customers. Modern manufacturing facilities across Delhi NCR have always ensured the seamless
supplies of the entire product range to the users.
Q. Do you see an explosion in Indian manufacturing in Pro Audio?
A. Govt of India has been encouraging local manufacturing across various industries and the world is
also looking at India as a reliable manufacturing hub. In this context, Ahuja has been scaling its
manufacturing facilities to meet the growing demand.
Q. Is innovative technology and low cost manufacturing the main strength of Ahuja or is it your
vast distribution network?
A. Actually Both. Ahuja has always harnessed technology to develop reliable products keeping in mind
the end-users, the actual application of the products in diverse climatic conditions, as well as
ease of servicing, and leaving a decent amount of headroom for unintentional misuse. Ahuja also
considers its association with dealers as the most sacred and has preserved these relationships for
years together. Dealers' feedback, suggestions and advice are taken most seriously at all levels of
management and ownership. Maintaining good relations with over 500 dealers in PAN India ensures
perpetual loyalty and makes them AHUJA brand ambassadors.
The Most Admired Indian Manufactured Electronics Brand-Awarded by Elcina
Q. We are seeing that online sales are impacting the Pro Audio industry in India. What or how
much is Ahuja's success with online sales?
A. Both online and offline channels will co-exist. For a selected range of standalone or
plug-and-play products, online channels may be a convenient option for the consumer, but for
sound reinforcement solution-based needs, requiring design and installation, personal
involvement and interaction with dealers and installers cannot be dispensed with. Therefore, the
well-equipped offline channel continues to play a crucial role in the sales & promotion of Pro
Audio & PA products.
Q. What is your vision for Ahuja for the future?
A. India is witnessing a major thrust and focus on infrastructure development across various
sectors including SMART cities. Ahuja sees this as an opportunity and is committed to
contributing to this by offering suitable international standard Public Address & Pro Audio
products and solutions, for times to come to uphold our leadership position.
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