In an exclusive interaction with Meenakshi Singh from Homes & Buildings, MR. ASHISH P. DHAKAN, MD & CEO, Prama Hikvision India Pvt. Ltd., decodes the transformation of India’s smart home security ecosystem. From modular, AI-powered innovations tailored to middle-income housing to climate-resilient technologies engineered for India’s extremes, he shares how Hikvision is enabling a new era of connected living—secure, scalable, and smartly designed for the Indian context.
India’s smart home sector has often been caught between perception and practical adoption. Has the ecosystem finally transitioned from aspirational hype to lived reality?
Absolutely. India’s smart home ecosystem is no longer confined to conceptual enthusiasm. It is maturing rapidly, propelled by factors like urban migration, rising disposable incomes,
and an expanding tech-savvy middle class. In fact, the smart home market is projected to touch US$7.3 billion by 2025, with a CAGR of 7.72% from 2025 to 2029. Beyond the numbers, key enablers include smartphone penetration and digitisation, which have unlocked user-friendly interfaces for controlling home devices. Additionally, increasing awareness around security and privacy has made consumers more proactive. As price points become more accessible, we are witnessing real integration into daily lives—not just in metros, but increasingly in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities as well.
India is a complex housing market, from high-density urban towers to independent homes in rural belts. How does Hikvision design across this diverse topography?
Diversity in Indian housing has been a driving force in our product innovation. At Hikvision, we’ve architected an entire suite of solutions that cater to this landscape. Our AcuSense technology filters noise and distinguishes real threats through intelligent motion detection. ColorVu cameras provide truecolour night vision, even in low-light rural setups. Panoramic cameras, black housing aesthetics, and varying megapixel options allow flexibility based on environment and infrastructure. Moreover, we’ve expanded beyond video security into access control, video door phones, biometric and facerecognition terminals, flap barriers, and even handheld detectors, ensuring that whether it’s a gated society in Gurgaon or a standalone bungalow in Satara, security is never compromised.
Are there innovations that were born specifically for Indian conditions—solutions that wouldn’t necessarily work in Western markets?
Indeed. A standout example is our Multi-Apartment Security Solution—a five-tier access management ecosystem engineered in collaboration with Indian developers and resident
associations. From perimeter-level surveillance to in-flat video verification, this solution maps the journey of every visitor. It integrates with elevators, common lobbies, and main gates using facial recognition and real-time alerts. The system even stores visitor logs on the cloud while giving residents mobile control via the Hik-Connect app. This tailored approach is hyperrelevant to India’s high-rise housing culture and community living ethos—
something not seen in many global markets.
How is Hikvision addressing the affordability gap—ensuring smart home access isn’t limited to premium buyers?
Affordability is not a constraint—it’s an innovation opportunity. We’ve made focused R&D investments to build scalable, modular systems. For instance, our entry-level smart cameras with 1080p HD, two-way audio, and night vision are now available at price points accessible to the mid-market. Our modular product architecture allows residents to start
small—with a smart doorbell or a camera—and scale up over time to full home automation.
We’re also deploying AI-based threat detection, cloud-based management, and energy-efficient technologies, making our solutions not only costeffective but also sustainable.
From the humid coasts of Chennai to the frigid terrain of Leh—how do you engineer consistency in performance across India’s climatic extremes?
Our products are built with India’s diverse climatic reality in mind. We use IP66 and IP67-rated housings for weather resistance, corrosionproof coatings for salt-heavy coastal regions, and temperature resilience ranging from -20°C to 60°C. Select models even feature built-in heating, defogging mechanisms, and ultra-low temperature functionality. This ensures that whether it’s the monsoons in Mumbai or a dust storm in Rajasthan, our cameras don’t flinch. This resilience is embedded in our product DNA through rigorous testing, which goes far beyond standard industrial benchmarks.
With security becoming a key differentiator for developers, how
can real estate stakeholders leverage your solutions during early-stage planning?
While OEMs like us provide the backbone, true value emerges when integration begins at the blueprint level. We’re increasingly collaborating with developers during project conception to design bespoke security ecosystems. These co-created solutions are not just about product placement—they’re about aligning with architecture, resident lifestyles, and evolving urban risks. We’re happy to white-label technologies, adapt UIs, and even provide backend service frameworks to support long-term maintenance and upgrades.
