Archive: August 20, 2022

Canon strikes a chord with every Indian photographer with The Kathakaar of Life campaign

National, August 2022: As an ode to photographers, Canon India is celebrating the art of storytelling with its unique new campaign titled ‘The Kathakaar of Life’ on World Photography Day. With a vision of humanizing and recognizing the fervour of professional photographers across the country, the campaign has been sung in a captivating and innocent voice of a child. Notably, the geo targeted campaign has been customised and sung in nine different regional languages. (Campaign Link- Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu, Gujarati and Assamese)

The campaign aims at creating awareness about Canon’s flagship EOS R System and positions it as every photographer’s quintessential companion to narrate their own personalised stories. Through this campaign, Canon celebrates photographers as superstars who are full of zeal and are out there in the world capturing every story of life; be it that of travel, weddings, fashion, wildlife or celebrations, all made possible with the help of the Kathakaar (EOS R System) to capture memories of a lifetime. The song is a beautiful narration of how the Canon EOS R system enables these superstar photographers to narrate their anecdotes seamlessly, no matter the shooting conditions, subject, or location.

Taking the campaign to new heights, and crowning superstars of Indian photography, Canon has announced a fascinating User Generated Contest titled ‘Canon Superstar’ on Instagram to run from 19th August to 25th August. For the contest, users are to save the Kathakaar audio, make reels of their photos or videos on one of the six photography genres – travel, fashion, wedding, wildlife, street and food. Entries will be in the form of reels to be posted along with the #KathakaarOfLife and specifying the genre of photography. Adding a more local flavour, any of the nine language tracks can be used to create the reels. Six lucky winners across India will be announced on 31st August, crowned as the superstars and rewarded with exciting Canon merchandise.

Speaking about the campaign, Mr. Manabu Yamazaki, President and CEO, Canon India said, “World Photography Day marks the celebration of photographers who bring forth incredible stories and help us reminisce those for life. The ‘Kathakaar of Life’ campaign celebrates the artist in every photographer and acknowledges the hard work, precision and eye for detail that goes behind bringing moments to life through pictures. The campaign is aimed at striking the right emotional chord with photographers spread across geographies in the most magnetic voice of a child in nine different languages. As one of the leading brands in the imaging industry, we at Canon India would like to recognize the magical journey of the thriving community of photographers and empower them to push boundaries in their artistry through our expansive range of cameras that cater to both amateurs as well as professional photographers. Whether it is the untamed stories of the wild Indian forests or the rich versatility of different terrains, we are here to celebrate enigmatic regional storytelling that has been made possible with the EOS R System and look forward to honouring creative entries through our Superstar contest.”

Sharing his thoughts on the prowess of the EOS R System, Mr. C Sukumaran, Senior Director – Consumer System Products and Imaging Communication Business said, “As Indians we take pride in being a country that is a melting pot of so many diverse cultures and at Canon in turn, we take pride in being a company that enables powerful storytelling for photographers across borders with the best imaging technology. This World Photography Day, we are celebrating not just how much our EOS system has technologically advanced but also photographers who have been with us in this very special journey and reached unimaginable creative possibilities with our imaging technology. With a whole new system and game-changing RF lens mount, we are proud to say that the Canon EOS R System delivers unmatched optical excellence and brings out details in every shot of every story.”

For photography enthusiasts, the Canon EOS R System cameras brings them the best of mirrorless cameras with modern designs and intuitive controls. Its advanced RF lenses deliver unprecedented levels of sharpness and fast shooting. Together, they are the complete package to bring the best out of every story captured. Encapsulating all its game-changing features along with the distinctive stories of photographers across genres, the campaign weaves a closer connect with Canon’s customers and appreciates the professional photography community.

Additionally, World Photography Day is all about celebrating the art and empowering photographers to take their art to the next level. To ensure the same, Canon has introduced multiple consumer initiatives across the country.

In the East region, Canon conducted a photo walk with Canon EOS Maestro, Soumya Shankar Ghosal in North Kolkata for professional photographers, amateur photographers and photography enthusiasts. The walk took over 50 participants across famous attractions in the city and helped them gain hands on knowledge of street photography. Further, Canon also arranged for a photography workshop for professional photographers, aimed at enhancing participants knowledge of photography, upskilling more than 100 photographers.

In the North, Canon held a photography workshop at Lovely Professional University, Phagwara for over 100 students from the Fine Arts department. As a brand that takes pride in being the one stop solution for all photography and printing needs, the workshop will be coupled with click and print activities. Participants will be clicking photographs and Canon will print those pictures via its printers and gift them quirky photo jackets made from the same. Additionally, Canon will also be organizing a basic outdoor photography workshop on 20th August at Bal Bharti Public School, Noida for 25 students who are amateur photographers. These students will get the opportunity to cultivate necessary knowledge and photography skills for a period of three hours. They will also be taught how to use entry level DSLR models there.

In the West, Canon conducted a photography workshop at Daund, Maharashtra, with ‘Wedding’ as the major theme. Through the workshop, Canon highlighted its mirrorless range (EOS R System), which saw over 50 participants join and learn more about Wedding Photography. Canon also participated in a stage exhibition in Indore which saw over 200 visitors in attendance. This was an onsite workshop, where the Kathakaar of Life campaign video was also played across all screens to showcase the brand-new campaign from Canon India.

In the South, Canon is organizing Vlogger meets across its Image Square stores in Bengaluru to empower creators to produce more engrossing content using the best of Canon imaging technology.

Steelbird to Open New State-Of-The-Art Eps Plant in Baddi In Himachal Pradesh

New Delhi, August  2022: Steelbird Hi-tech India Limited, Asia’s largest helmet manufacturer, is all set to set up a new state-of-the-art EPS plant at Baddi in Himachal Pradesh.

The company has acquired new land and is planning to make an initial investment of Rs25 crore in the facility, which is spread over 2.2 acres. This facility will facilitate an in-house expanded polystyrene (EPS) production line. EPS is a crushable foam used in helmet production.

Commenting on the opening of the new plants, Mr. Kashish Kapur, Director, Steelbird Helmets said “Our family has been in the manufacturing of helmets for generations. As we have been making helmets since 1976, we understand the importance and what goes behind manufacturing quality helmets. Particularly when we look at the current scenario in India, less than 2% of manufacturers know about helmets and the way to manufacture them. They often overlook the manufacturing process, the tech specs, the safety protocols and the qualifying standards. Furthermore, all EPS producers are packaging producers, not component producers.

But let’s understand ESP is a safety component and is very significant for safety features and quality. Also, for higher quality, double density EPS is required. On this front, we at Steelbird, have the prowess to inject double density. Our helmets boast nine sizes, where each size of the EPS is different and the density of EPS in each size is different. The idea of setting up this EPS plant is, therefore, to give the best safety to the
riders.

We also know, the government and the ministry are doing a lot of work towards road safety. Road safety has become a very important concern in our country because so many fatalities are occurring and the government is putting a lot of effort into saving human lives. And this move is in sync with the government’s effort to save lives.”

Steelbird, devoted to the research, development, and manufacturing of high-technology and meeting the safety concerns of its riders, has already made a move in this direction.  The company has bought 8836 square metres of new land adjoining the existing plant. The new plant in Baddi will have a total of 60,000 square feet of built-up area and will be ready by the end of 2022. The plant will have an average production capacity of manufacturing 22,000 EPS a day. The new EPS plant facilities will ensure direct employment for over 150 individuals. The highly automated plant will employ the latest manufacturing processes.

“This action demonstrates our dedication to Make in India and reaffirms our position as the industry leaders by using some of the best production techniques from around the world. Our new factory would increase our production efficiency, open up job opportunities for local residents, and contribute to overall economic growth.” Further added Kashish Kapur

A product like a helmet is not a simple and easy product, but rather a difficult one. Manufacturing helmets needs huge investments as it is a volume-centric product. Moreover, a helmet is a highly technological product, and something like an EPS shell is the heart of the helmet.

“Helmet manufacturing is an extremely complex process and the density has to be accurate in an EPS shell to homologate one helmet. To ensure that the standards are accurate, we test 200-400 helmets for each standard. To streamline this process, Steelbird will be making use of the upgraded machine that is, New Dual Hoper at the new plant. This international machine is used for the insertion of EPS into the form of a helmet shell, which gives the dual density to the helmet.” Said Mr. Kashish Kapur On this front, the company is manufacturing EPS in-house, and with this it will stand true to its commitment of giving the riders the safest helmet in India even if it has to bear additional cost.

The new state-of-the-art plant will enable further growth for the company by tapping intonew opportunities. By opening this new premise, Steelbird will not only improve thecompany’s helmet offerings but also reinforce its commitment to bring more advanced and innovative products with the latest EPS technology that are on par with international standards.

With this new facility, Steelbird now has eight manufacturing factories in the country, with four being located in Noida and four in Baddi. Steelbird is currently manufacturing 20,000 helmets per day and is growing at a 22% CAGR. The company also exports its helmets to over 60 countries.

Tourism Malaysia Alliances with Matta to Organise Second Roadshow in India

KOLKATA, AUGUST, 2022: Tourism Malaysia continues with its second road show to India this year, together with the Malaysia Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) across four cities from 17th to 24 August 2022.The road show kicks off in the city of Visakhapatnam, followed by Kolkata, Kochi and Tiruchirappalli.

The mission is headed by the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, YB Datuk Seri Dr. Santhara J.P., together with Malaysia’s tourism fraternity which consists of one (1) Malaysia-based airline, eighteen (16) travel agents, two (2) hoteliers, and one (1)state government agency.

Since the reopening of Malaysia’s international borders on 1st April 2022, Tourism Malaysia initiated its first road show to six major cities in India from 18th to 30th April, followed by its participation in this year’s South Asia Travel & Tourism Exchange (SATTE) from 18th to 20th May.

India remains and has been one of the top market sources for Malaysia and has contributed 735,309 arrivals (+22%) in 2019. Apart from its objective to instill confidence among Indians to feel safe to visit Malaysia once again, the road show aims to provide a platform for the industry community to steer the tourism sector and return even stronger.

“This is the right time to be back in India, and planning for this road show is very opportune. The resumption of scheduled international flights from India coincides with the reopening of Malaysia’s international borders. We are very thrilled to welcome Indian travelers once again to our humble abode,” said Datuk Seri Dr. Santhara J.P.

Fully-vaccinated travellers can now enjoy quarantine-free travel to Malaysia, and are no longer required to undergo pre-departure and on-arrival COVID-19 tests.

Currently, Malaysian eVISA can be applied online and more than 14,000 seats are offered weekly between India and Malaysia through Malaysia Airlines, Batik Air, Air Asia, IndiGo, and Air India Express.

IoA, UK collaborates with ISDC to launch IoA Analyst Competency Framework in Hyderabad

Hyderabad, August 2022: The Institute of Analytics (IoA), UK, in association with the International Skill Development Corporation (ISDC), today launched the IoA Analyst Competency framework at a roundtable organised in Hyderabad. This is part of the Indian regional launch of the IoA Analyst Competency Framework. ISDC (International Skill Development Corporation) is a leading global provider for British education and skills, and also has a very active presence in India by working in partnership with an excess of 200 universities and higher education providers in India.

During the launch event, a roundtable discussion was held on developing future skills. Osmania University, Amity University, NMIMS Hyderabad, and GITAM University were among the prominent universities that attended the event. A panel of experts discussed the salient features and prospects of the analytical competency framework. The framework will be launched in Bengaluru and Mumbai region on the 20th and 24th of August 2022, respectively.

IoA is a professional body for analytics and data science professionals worldwide, with over 4500 members. The IoA develops and delivers analytical skills across a wide range of disciplines in collaboration with many Indian universities and institutes. On June 22nd, 2022, IoA launched the new Analyst Competency Framework at parliament in the UK.

Using this framework, organisations can upskill existing staff to become more data literate, as well as offer structured guidance to graduate trainees. Organizations can take advantage of data analytics opportunities through the framework, which offers over 7 years of professional preparation in various key skill areas.

Emphasizing the importance of analytics in the future, Mr. Tom Joseph; Executive Director, Strategy & Development at ISDC, said, “Analytics will be highly essential for skill development in the future. It is necessary for the effective use of data. We are thrilled to be working with IoA on the India regional launch of the IoA analyst competency framework. Our goals with this framework are to enable professionals to become data leaders of tomorrow. We are eager to work with more Indian universities and organisations to upskill themselves with data science and analytics as part of their career advancement plans. After successful launch in Hyderabad, we are looking forward to the framework launch in Bengaluru and Mumbai region”.