MAM
‘Made in India’ traces Lupin founder’s rise and India’s pharma boom
Authors trace Lupin’s rise alongside India’s march to global pharma power
MUMBAI: A new book chronicling the rise of Indian pharmaceuticals through the life of Lupin founder Desh Bandhu Gupta, was launched in Mumbai on Sunday, bringing together leading figures from the industry to reflect on how India became the world’s pharmacy.
Made in India, written by journalist Sundeep Khanna and TeamLease Services co-founder Manish Sabharwal, traces three intertwined journeys: the evolution of India’s pharmaceutical industry, the growth of Lupin into a global generics major, and Gupta’s transformation from a small-town academic into one of India’s most influential entrepreneurs.
The book recounts how Gupta, raised without privilege in rural Rajasthan, moved from teaching and pharmaceutical jobs to founding a company now valued at around $10 billion, with medicines reaching patients in more than 120 countries. It details how Lupin navigated regulatory hurdles, financial crises and global quality standards to emerge as a multinational player.
Written with candour, the authors confront setbacks and personal costs alongside success, portraying institution-building as a slow and often painful process rather than a heroic sprint. The narrative also highlights the pivotal role played by Gupta’s wife, Manju Gupta, in building Lupin and its parallel commitment to community welfare and rural development.
The launch featured a panel discussion on the past and future of Indian pharma, with industry leaders including Dilip Shanghvi of Sun Pharma, Yusuf Hamied of Cipla, G.V. Prasad of Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Vinita Gupta of Lupin and academic M. M. Sharma.
Speakers underlined how Indian companies dismantled the notion that multinational drugmakers held an unassailable advantage, helping the country emerge as a dominant supplier of affordable medicines. India today produces nearly half of the 400 billion pills consumed annually in the US and accounts for about 60 per cent of global vaccine supply, with a third of US FDA-approved drug manufacturing plants located in the country.
Praise for the book highlighted Gupta’s role as one of the architects of India’s pharmaceutical rise, alongside figures such as Anji Reddy, Parvinder Singh, Ramanbhai Patel and Habil Khorakiwala. Together, the founders are credited with marrying entrepreneurial ambition to public health priorities, reshaping India’s manufacturing reputation and extending its global influence.
Brands
Faber-Castell India appoints Sunaina Haldar as director – marketing
With stints at Tata, SleepyCat and ADF Foods under her belt, Haldar is primed to redraw Faber-Castell’s brand story
MUMBAI: Faber-Castell India has poached Sunaina Haldar from ADF Foods, appointing her director – marketing as the German stationery brand looks to muscle up in a category that is rapidly reinventing itself around creativity and self-expression.
Haldar hit the ground running. “My first couple of weeks have been incredibly energising, understanding consumers, visiting markets, engaging with retailers and immersing myself into the world of Faber-Castell Group,” she said.
She arrives with considerable firepower. At ADF Foods, Haldar ran marketing across India and international markets for a portfolio spanning Ashoka, Aeroplane, Camel and ADF Soul. Before that, she was vice-president – marketing at direct-to-consumer mattress brand SleepyCat, where she helmed brand, content and performance marketing. Her résumé also includes a stint leading marketing, new product development and CRM for Tata SmartFoodz at Tata Consumer Products, no small proving ground.
Between corporate roles, Haldar also operated as a fractional CMO for early-stage startups, building marketing strategy and operational structures from scratch, a signal that she knows how to move fast with limited resources.
With 18 years straddling FMCG, D2C and the startup world, Haldar now takes the reins at a brand that has long owned the classroom but is clearly hungry for the living room. In a stationery market where the pencil has become a lifestyle statement, Faber-Castell has picked someone who knows exactly how to sell that story.
