Know why MTV’s brand new Cafe in Delhi is the place to visit this year!

MTV’s first ever café FLYP@MTV, which opened its doors to Delhi this Christmas eve in Connaught Place, has left us absolutely dumbfounded with its mindblowing tech innovations! For the first time, we have a café in India with some of the best technology which you may not have encountered while partying or hanging out in the most happening places in the country, we bet. It starts with the moment you enter FLYP@MTV. A 55 inches television placed right at the entrance of the café runs you through the occupancy inside the outlet, the demographics (which means you get know who are inside - gender and profession-wise), live events taking place and profile of the week.

Once you are inside, a 32" touch-screen TV with an interactive world map welcomes you to choose countries from the highlighted selection. When a country is selected, the selfie function opens up; digital background, headgear and dishes (of the selected country) appear and photos are clicked along with your photo/selfie. These pictures will be posted on FLYP Facebook Page! Isn’t that super cool?

As you occupy one of the tables here comes the community/Chef’s recommendations hologram. Yes Hologram! Now, what’s that for? A 22" Hologram on 22" touch screen is displayed for presenting chef’s most popular dishes, for you to visualize the dishes in a hologram and then select using the touch screen. Did we just forget to mention the chef, the exclusive menu detailed with fusion and original in-house recipes has been created by celebrity chef Ranveer Brar.

There’s more, wait! You will have portable devices with bottoms and sliders for available seating, calling the waiter, calling for cheque, searching profiles of people in the space, countdown timer for arrival of food, mini-display for upcoming song info, voting for the upcoming song to be played or not, controllers to play games on video wall, controlling ambient light and music volume in the table area, poking another person in the space or sending them a drink!

Business Insider got chatting with Mr. Saugato Bhowmik, Senior VP, Consumer Products, Viacom 18 Media to know more about this café:

How did the idea of an MTV café, and the concept of WORK, CHILL, PLAY come by?

The entire idea behind the concept of WORK, CHILL, PLAY at FLYP@MTV was to create an experiential space where
the youth of the country can come in and experience of DNA of MTV. The fun, quirkiness, boldness, attitude, stature, the overall ethos of MTV is something that we want our TG to experience in a format that they do not get bored with.

FLYP@MTV is an extension of MTV’s philosophy to kill boring. The youth gets bored very easily today and it is important as a brand for us to keep them engaged and connected with us through different offerings

MTV has ventured into multiple formats and have mastered the brand extensions through creative efforts; be it co-creating quality shows and campaigns or creating exciting properties or consumer merchandise and we feel this concept of WORK, CHILL & PLAY with a quirky curated Food & beverage menu will offer the youth multiple options to stay entertained through the entire day

How do you want to position yourself in the hospitality space, especially when you have opened in CP – the hub of cafes in Delhi?

Our positioning is simple and straightforward- we want to kill boring. We want to be known as a progressive destination to work, chill and play. The youth today is vibrant and loves to flip from work mode to surf mode to lounge mode and to party mode and in different order. Keeping this in mind, we have designed a place which is so much more than a café. FLYP@MTV is consistent with the DNA of MTV DNA – Experimental, Informal, Irreverent and Witty. The youth’s taste in music, style, products, food, technology etc. has all been kept in mind while working on the offerings of the café. Each element in the café gets its inspiration from various themes associated with MTV.

Technology seems to be a a big part of this place. What went behind deciding on using tech innovations at FLYP @ MTV?

The USP of FLYP@MTV is the engagement and interactive elements we have incorporated. For example, since we are a co-working space, it was essential for us to ensure that our consumers benefit from the each other so we have placed tablets at all tables at the café where in the consumers can check the different kinds of people in café as the same time as them and connect with them by sending a request on tablet first and upon acceptance meeting them in person next. Our talent record room is a never-seen-before element where anyone can record a song and upload it after reviewing audio and video file of the song. Usage of innovative technology like hologram on the touch screen showcasing the menu, registering a feedback on the feedback wall and a MTV Virtual Museum for the customer to explore MTV world in the previous years through oculus and controllers are some of the features that promise to take technology to a different level.

What’s the short term and long term goals?
In the short term, we want to be the must-visit destination in Delhi for people looking for inspiration, networking opportunities, a stage to showcase their talent and the best place to hang out at! MTV is known for anticipating the pulse of the youth ahead of the curve and with this café, we want to continue to set and fuel trends and create a gateway to new experiences for the consumers. In the long term, we want to continue to lead the change from on TV culture to an on-ground experience and expand into markets like Bangalore and Mumbai next followed by expansion in cities like Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and even Jaipur. Our plan is to open at least 10 cafes in the next 5 years.

What’s the kind of response you are looking at?
The response so far since the opening has been overwhelming. To continue the momentum, we aim to engage with the hugely growing young urban population in the capital-NCR region and present them with newer opportunities to explore and experience. We have created experiences to ensure enough reasons for FLYP@MTV to become a cult work place and the must party hangout. For an experiential aspect, the café promises to be a learning hub for its consumers, allowing them to attend art, music and other workshops organized in-house without any extra charges. The food and cocktail menu which has been curated by the celebrated Chef Ranveer Brar has been detailed with fusion and original house recipes and an explosive events calendar has also been planned for the months ahead to keep up with the party quotient. We want more and more people to walk into our doors and become regulars eventually.