Don't Hang Up On Books

WHO can deny the simple pleasure of aimlessly browsing in bookladen stores? But with the pressures of modern life being what they are, browsing is taking the backseat. And a new business is blossoming. Bibliophile Maya Lalchandani has launched a personlised Dial-A-Book (DAB) service, while Internet buff Rohan Bulchandani improved on it by floating his online bookstore Annet Communications last month. Bookstores, no laggards, are moving their DAB delivery boys deeper into the suburbs, from Bandra to Borivali. With no extra charges, with some even offering discounts.

Lalchandani has 5,000 titles, aims for 10,000, with an eye on other metros. Bul-chandani has 10,000 titles, office data base of over a lakh, intends to go global by accepting credit cards (once they are allowed on the Indian Net). The Danai store at suburban Khar Road takes over 25 calls daily, Crossword 30, Lalchandani more than 15, Bulchandani over 50.

And the numbers are only soaring, with the service buoyed by personalised attention. Lalchandani will soon gift diyas and rakhis on festivals, while Bulchandani puts out reviews, bestseller lists, intending to bait children through fancy marketing plans at schools. Both say awareness has increased demand, while the hassle of commuting, finding scant parking spots in cramped Mumbai, has pushed browsers out of shops. In the process, rues proprietor of Strand Bookstore T.N. Shanbag: "We have lost the serendipity of discovering, by chance, the books we want to read."

But Lalchandani believes that as long as a reader knows he wants a Churchill biography or a Charles Dickens novel, browsing long distance cannot be sniffed at. "Where do readers in Mumbai have time to browse? Most of my orders are from suburbs, since there are fewer bookshops here. It's just not the discount or free delivery. It's the personalised service—if the reader identifies his taste I suggest books that he will want to pick up," she says.

Lalchandani also shares detailed bibliographic information, even proposing the type of book that will fit the caller's budget. Lalchandani schmoozes with suppliers "who have their fingers on the readers' and publishers' pulse", upgrades her knowledge on books and authors by surfing the Net ceaselessly. Such information is secondhand, critiques Shanbaug. Besides, he believes it is unethical to retail over the Net, particularly if Indian prices are lower than elsewhere in the world.

 Bulchandani—who has tied up India Book House, Rupa and Jaico among others to hawk books on the Net—disagrees. What can compete with free delivery, 25 per cent discount, confidence of getting the book you want in just 48 hours, or importing (at some extra charge) a book you must have any which way. "Though we stock only fast-moving titles, no book is impossible for us to get," he says, clearing believing that only such "fads" will animate the wilting habit or reading.

 But DAB and Internet trade is still in a nascent stage, notes M.S. Vipin of India Book Distributors, "It will be big once publishers, distributors pump in more money on publicity." Rajan T. Das of Rupa and Co echoes this: "Though readership has risen by 50 per cent in the last 20 years, the hype surrounding books is limited to bestsellers. International publishers, since they don't have to spend on publicity and are aware of piracy here, offer good discounts. But only for bestsellers. In India, the potential for books is great. But we still have a long way to go." DAB sellers will surely agree with that.