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Air India has unveiled ‘Safety Mudras’, the airline’s new inflight safety video that it says seamlessly blends safety instructions with the kaleidoscope of India's vibrant culture.

‘Safety Mudra’: Mudra, a Hindi word that translates to '(hand) gestures,' is one of the most striking features of Indian classical dance as a form of expression, used in the new inflight safety video for demonstration.

Developed in collaboration with the visionary trio of Prasoon Joshi of McCann Worldgroup, Shankar Mahadevan, and Bharatbala, the video is crafted to engage passengers and showcase the diversity and depth of the Indian culture, while delivering essential safety information.

For centuries, Indian classical dance and folk art forms have served as mediums of storytelling and instruction. Air India’s new inflight safety video integrates safety instructions with mudras or dance expressions in eight diverse dance forms - Bharatnatyam, Bihu, Kathak, Kathakali, Mohiniyattam, Odissi, Ghoomar, and Giddha - from around the country. Each featured dance form presents a specific safety instruction, providing vital information in an engaging and culturally immersive manner.

Campbell Wilson, CEO & MD, Air India, said: “As a flagbearer of the country and a longstanding patron of Indian art and culture, Air India is delighted to present a work of art that is designed to deliver essential safety instructions while showcasing India’s rich cultural diversity to travellers around the world. Our guests will find this inflight safety video to be more immersive and informative, and a warm welcome to India from the moment they step onboard.”

Featuring music composed by Grammy Award-winning music composer and singer Shankar Mahadevan, the video invites passengers to experience a harmonious fusion of safety and culture. This project, spanning approximately six months, involved creators travelling and capturing the essence of India visually through mesmerizing locations across the length and breadth of the country.

The safety video will be initially accessible on Air India’s recently introduced A350 aircraft, which is equipped with state-of-the-art inflight entertainment screens. It will be progressively deployed on other aircraft in Air India’s fleet.

“Tasked with the challenge to create a concept that keeps passengers engaged, embody Indian culture and elevate the Air India brand globally, we went to great lengths to poise the essential and the evocative. Indian classical dance forms have one unique dimension - storytelling. And that is what made me think of this idea of using these Indian dance forms to deliver the safety instructions for air travel. I am fortunate that this idea found resonance with the fantastic Air India team. And, with a longtime friend and ever brilliant Bharatbala who really made this thought possible. It’s indeed a matter of pride for McCann to work with Air India,” said Prasoon Joshi, Chairman McCann Worldgroup Asia Pacific, CEO & CCO McCann Worldgroup India; and celebrated writer & lyricist.

Shankar Mahadevan, celebrated Indian music composer and singer said, “I am very happy I got to create the music for the safety instruction video for Air India. With the new chapter of Air India, their safety instruction video too is pathbreaking and very culturally rich. It is a combination of the various dance forms from India - with the dancers demonstrating the safety briefing actions by way of mudras. The music changes as per the dance form as well. Cheers to Air India for creating something that has never been done before, I am very proud to be a part of this.”

Bharatbala, Indian film director, producer and screenwriter said, "Having previously worked on projects that showcase the cultural diversity of India, this nuanced opportunity from Air India, enabled me to present our timeless classical and folk-art forms with a contemporary vision. We are an ancient country but with a modern outlook. And for India’s leading global carrier, Air India, to communicate a safety mandate in this manner brought even more responsibility on me to create a spectacle. Filming across the beautiful landscapes and monuments, giving each dance form its place of pride, is truly an enriching experience. This journey enables the passengers to experience India visually, musically, and emotionally on a grand canvas. This film will be etched as one of my special creations and I hope will be an added feather in the rich legacy of Air India. Welcome on board!”

The Tata Group and Singapore Airlines-owned Air India has launched a new app that will help its crew keep abreast of the latest information flow including passenger preferences, a person in the know said.

The app called Cabin Executive Plus (CE Plus) gives easy access to flight rosters, operating crew information, real-time seat maps, and more, including a repository of documents such as the Galley Loading Plans, Style and Image Guidelines, In-flight Announcement Handbook and Service Flow for easy reference.

The app can also generate Cabin Crew Voyage Reports in offline mode so that flight observations, cabin defects, and other issues can be lodged and electronically routed for quick and easy resolution.

The app also populates passenger information including loyalty status/tiers, meal preferences, and special handling requests so that we can provide a more seamless and personalized in-flight experience for our guests.

Air India is pushing to reinvent itself since the Tata Group takeover two years back for Rs 18,000 crore.

It has since placed an order of 470 aircraft with Boeing and Airbus as part of its $70 billion fleet expansion programme that includes 34 A350-1000, six A350-900, 20 Boeing 787 Dreamliners and 10 Boeing 777X widebody aircraft, as well as 140 Airbus A320neo, 70 Airbus A321neo and 190 Boeing 737MAX narrow-body aircraft some of which have already started coming.

The global aviation industry, while witnessing a resurgence in post-pandemic travel demand, finds itself navigating through a labyrinth of challenges. Despite signs of easing, parts shortages and delivery delays continue to cast shadows over the sector's recovery efforts. At the recent Singapore Airshow, industry leaders shed light on the persisting hurdles and the potential timeline for resolution.

Supply Chain Struggles

European giant Airbus and American counterpart Boeing are grappling with the mammoth task of meeting soaring demand for new aircraft. However, supply chain disruptions stemming from the pandemic's aftermath and geopolitical tensions, notably the conflict in Ukraine, have triggered a cascade of delays. Lead times for crucial components like metals and windshields have ballooned, stretching two to five times longer compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Impact of Geopolitical Unrest

The aerospace industry is feeling the reverberations of geopolitical unrest, particularly with the aerospace-grade titanium shortage catalyzed by the conflict in Ukraine. The war's ripple effects have cascaded into shortages of materials such as inconel and steel, exacerbating the industry's woes.

Price Surges and Maintenance Dilemmas

The scarcity of parts has precipitated significant price surges, with some components experiencing spikes of 20%-30%, a stark contrast to the typical annual increases of 3%-6%. Maintenance firms like Lufthansa Technik are scrambling to adapt, resorting to strategies like bulk buying and in-house repair solutions to honor customer agreements amidst the tumultuous landscape.

Engine Groundings Compound Woes

The saga of engine groundings, particularly those equipped with GTF engines by RTX subsidiary Pratt & Whitney, further compounds the industry's woes. Hundreds of planes have faced temporary groundings for extensive engine inspections, a process anticipated to linger for years, further exacerbating delivery delays and operational disruptions.

Adaptation and Resilience

Amidst the turbulence, airlines and maintenance firms are embracing a paradigm shift in their supply chain strategies. Concepts like 'just in time' procurement are evolving into more resilient models, necessitating increased stockpiling of spare parts and localized inventories to mitigate risks and ensure operational continuity.

Conclusion

The road to recovery for the global aviation industry is fraught with challenges, as parts shortages and delivery delays persist. While efforts are underway to alleviate bottlenecks, industry stakeholders brace themselves for a prolonged journey to normalization, with estimates suggesting a timeline of up to two years for resolution. Adaptation, resilience, and strategic recalibration of supply chain dynamics emerge as imperatives in navigating through the turbulence, as the industry strives to soar amidst the lingering shadows of uncertainty.

With Inputs from Reuters