Indian Women In Sarees Inspired Hyundai's Tall Hatch Design - Tarun Garg At IEC 2025

At the recent India Economic Conclave 2025, Tarun Garg, Whole Time Director and Chief Operating Officer, Hyundai Motor India, reflected on the brand's 30-year journey in India and shared interesting anecdotes on the design inspiration behind the Santro hatchback, the success story of the Creta mid-sized SUV and the recent IPO that in Garg's words has made Hyundai 'Truly Indian'.

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How does Hyundai design its cars to suit Indian women in sarees?

Watch as Tarun Garg, Whole Time Director & Chief Operating Officer- Hyundai Motor India Limited, explains to @AyeshaFaridi1.@HyundaiIndia @IDFCFIRSTBank #IEC2025 #INDIAECONOMICCONCLAVE pic.twitter.com/Z0k37PzFlP

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Speaking on Hyundai's decades-long journey in India, Garg highlighted the foundations and what inspired the original Santro's iconic tall-boy design. 'Hyundai decided that we have to give respect to India. What I mean is that, for example, Indian women wear sarees and Hyundai was very sensitive towards that. So ingress into the car and coming out of the car became very important, and that is when the tall-boy design Santro came in, and it became an instant hit. So it was a very local solution, not that we just brought in a global car and tried to push it into India. The second thing was that the Indian auto industry was evolving and Hyundai was one company with very global technologies. So if some of you would remember, we brought in the MPFI engine, with multi-point fuel injection and the power steering. I mean, what better solution for India than power steering?, Garg shared at the forum.

The COO also spoke on India's diesel-car wave and the transition from a small car market to an aspirational market. Speaking on the transition, Garg pointed out, saying, 'India was a small car market. What changed it? Very humbly, I would say, probably the Creta changed it from a small car market. From a market of functional requirements, we became an aspirational country of youth, where people want to evolve and to be seen like their global peers. But the most important thing I would say is our humble contribution towards nation-building. Very humbly, I would say we first started with our Chennai Plant 1, then went to the Chennai Plant 2, we also have our R&D center in Hyderabad and another one now in Pune. So the ecosystem, the economy, job creation, our dealers, our vendors, I think, play an important role in putting India on wheels and contributing to the Indian economy.

Tarun Garg, Whole Time Director and Chief Operating Officer, Hyundai Motor India Limited, highlights India’s potential to emerge as a major export hub across sectors.@IDFCFIRSTBank #IEC2025 #INDIAECONOMICCONCLAVE pic.twitter.com/XDaERlC0hv

— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) December 18, 2025

Closing his statement on Hyundai's impact on India, Garg spoke about the carmaker's Make-in-India roots and how Hyundai has been exporting from the country has been a cornerstone of the India business model and strategy. 'Until date we are the largest cumulative exporter from India, you know, so we are the hub for emerging markets, so that is again something which is very, very important.' Gard said at the forum.

However, in the COO's eyes, the one true moment for Hyundai, which completed the brand's transition into being truly Indian, was the recent IPO. In Garg's words, 'I think it has been a very fulfilling journey and to cap it all with the biggest IPO, which has made us truly Indian, in terms of mobility over the past 30 years. Thank you.

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