Just over seven months after Eli Lilly launched Mounjaro ( tirzepatide) in India, the diabetes and weight-loss medicine has emerged the country’s highest selling drug, racing past top-selling legacy drugs like antibiotic Augmentin.
When Mounjaro debuted in March, the market was on the cusp of a transformation – driven by consumers showing greater willingness to use medical therapies for weight management amid rising cases of obesity and diabetes. But few had anticipated the pace at which it would dominate.
Top officials and industry insiders attribute this ascent to a flurry of reasons – from the US drug maker’s shrewd marketing strategy and smart brand positioning as a weight-loss drug first to superior patient experience with faster and higher weight-loss efficacy and precise timing.
Industry insiders peg Mounjaro’s total sales at Rs 450 crore till October – a staggering figure for a therapy that entered the market this year.
PharmaTrac data till September showed that Mounjaro had raked in cumulative Rs 235 crore, while its competitor Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy (semaglutide) could post only Rs 28 crore since its launch in June.
Globally, too, tirzepatide has emerged the highest selling drug with sales of $24.8 billion year to date, racing past cancer drug Merck’s Keytruda at $23.3 billion.
“We are working closely with governments, healthcare providers, and organisations to advance the recognition of obesity as a chronic disease,” Winselow Tucker, president and general manager of Eli Lilly and Company (India), told ET. “Globally, our incretin portfolio strategy focuses on increasing access through expanded manufacturing and strategic collaborations, advancing our pipeline with next-generation therapies including oral options, and enhancing patient experience through solutions that improve affordability and convenience.”
Tucker said India is a strategic market for Lilly. “We are deeply committed to bringing innovative therapies to the country to help address the significant unmet needs of patients,” he said.
Lilly recently entered into partnership with Cipla to broaden access to tirzepatide beyond top cities by tapping into the Mumbai-based company’s marketing and distribution network.
“Expanding access remains a key priority, and our partnership with Cipla to launch Yurpeak, a second brand of tirzepatide, reflects our commitment to making this breakthrough therapy more widely available to patients across the country,” Tucker said.
Besides prescription-based sales through retailers, allied specialties such as cosmetologists, bariatric surgeons, and obesity centres are sourcing Mounjaro directly from distributors.
“Many of them have integrated anti-obesity medication in their package and the prescription may not go to the retailer… They buy it directly from the stockists and that is why the actual sales are much higher than the prescriptions,” leading diabetologist Rajiv Kovil said.
Experts said while Lilly’s first big edge was timing when it launched three months ahead of Wegovy, its most impactful tactical decision was to launch Mounjaro in vials first rather than waiting for global pen supplies.
In a market where patients are cost-conscious and wary of committing to expensive new therapies, the vial format provided an affordable trial run.
Patients could buy one or two vials to test tolerability before moving to the more expensive Kwikpen packs.
This strategy — initially born out of global pen shortages — turned into a masterstroke. It cut the cost barrier for first-time users and allowed physicians to initiate therapy confidently without overburdening patients financially.
“Lilly coming up with vials because they were not getting pens in India because of the demand globally was a masterstroke to cut the cost and get it into a vial format so that they have a first mover advantage,” Kovil said.
In contrast, Wegovy launched only in pen format, forcing patients to buy entire packs upfront. In cases of side effects or intolerance, patients were left with unused, costly pens — a major deterrent in India’s out-of-pocket market.
Neeraj Tulara, diabetologist and founder of Mumbai’s Bookurdoc Specialty Clinics and Medical Centre, said, “Mounjaro is now promoting Kwikpen but they still have the vials available… People like us, when we start Mounjaro, we give one or two vials for one or two weeks and then, when the patient is settled, we start Kwikpen.”
Mounjaro vials come in dosing strength of 2.5 mg vial for about Rs 3,500 and 5 mg vial for about Rs 4,375.
The Kwikpens come in packs of four monthly dosages of once-a-week each and cost between Rs 14,000 and Rs 27,500.
Wegovy is currently priced at Rs 17,345 to Rs 26,050 per pen-filled injection, which comprises a month’s dose of four once-a-week shots.
Novo Nordisk did not respond to ET's request for comment until press time Monday.
Another key factor driving Mounjaro uptake is its superior efficacy in weight loss. It has a weight-loss efficacy of 20-22%, compared with 16-18% for Wegovy, experts said.
Also, while both Mounjaro and Wegovy originated as diabetes drugs, Lilly took a bold step in repositioning Mounjaro as a weight-loss and obesity therapy first, not a diabetes injection. This distinction was crucial in India, where many people view obesity as a lifestyle issue but hesitate to use “diabetes medicine.” Tulara said.
“There is a brand perception and acceptance among many patients about Mounjaro as a weight-loss and obesity drug first rather than a diabetes drug,” he said.
Vyankatesh Shivane, diabetology consultant at Jaslok Hospital, said, “Credit goes to Mounjaro for creating more awareness about obesity and weight management.”
Industry insiders also pointed to executional gaps in Novo Nordisk’s rollout of Wegovy. Frequent salesforce changes and limited local partnerships have impacted its adoption.
“My experience is that there are gaps in Wegovy’s marketing,” Tulara said. “For instance, their representatives keep changing and moving… Mounjaro’s engagement has been steadier in comparison.”
However, Mounjaro’s meteoric rise may plateau once cheaper generics of semaglutide (Wegovy) hit the Indian market, expected by early 2026, experts said.
As price competition intensifies, patients may shift toward lower-cost alternatives, especially in long-term therapy.
“Mounjaro is prescribed more right now because this is the honeymoon period of obesity and a lot of people are looking at weight loss rather than benefits of weight loss. But this will plateau down in the next few months with the generics coming into the market by March,” Kovil said.
Doctors said that while Mounjaro leads on speed, smart marketing and early results, semaglutide still enjoys stronger cardiovascular and renal outcome data — which could sway prescribing trends in patients with comorbidities.
When Mounjaro debuted in March, the market was on the cusp of a transformation – driven by consumers showing greater willingness to use medical therapies for weight management amid rising cases of obesity and diabetes. But few had anticipated the pace at which it would dominate.
Top officials and industry insiders attribute this ascent to a flurry of reasons – from the US drug maker’s shrewd marketing strategy and smart brand positioning as a weight-loss drug first to superior patient experience with faster and higher weight-loss efficacy and precise timing.
Industry insiders peg Mounjaro’s total sales at Rs 450 crore till October – a staggering figure for a therapy that entered the market this year.
PharmaTrac data till September showed that Mounjaro had raked in cumulative Rs 235 crore, while its competitor Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy (semaglutide) could post only Rs 28 crore since its launch in June.
Globally, too, tirzepatide has emerged the highest selling drug with sales of $24.8 billion year to date, racing past cancer drug Merck’s Keytruda at $23.3 billion.
“We are working closely with governments, healthcare providers, and organisations to advance the recognition of obesity as a chronic disease,” Winselow Tucker, president and general manager of Eli Lilly and Company (India), told ET. “Globally, our incretin portfolio strategy focuses on increasing access through expanded manufacturing and strategic collaborations, advancing our pipeline with next-generation therapies including oral options, and enhancing patient experience through solutions that improve affordability and convenience.”
Tucker said India is a strategic market for Lilly. “We are deeply committed to bringing innovative therapies to the country to help address the significant unmet needs of patients,” he said.
Lilly recently entered into partnership with Cipla to broaden access to tirzepatide beyond top cities by tapping into the Mumbai-based company’s marketing and distribution network.
“Expanding access remains a key priority, and our partnership with Cipla to launch Yurpeak, a second brand of tirzepatide, reflects our commitment to making this breakthrough therapy more widely available to patients across the country,” Tucker said.
Besides prescription-based sales through retailers, allied specialties such as cosmetologists, bariatric surgeons, and obesity centres are sourcing Mounjaro directly from distributors.
“Many of them have integrated anti-obesity medication in their package and the prescription may not go to the retailer… They buy it directly from the stockists and that is why the actual sales are much higher than the prescriptions,” leading diabetologist Rajiv Kovil said.
Experts said while Lilly’s first big edge was timing when it launched three months ahead of Wegovy, its most impactful tactical decision was to launch Mounjaro in vials first rather than waiting for global pen supplies.
In a market where patients are cost-conscious and wary of committing to expensive new therapies, the vial format provided an affordable trial run.
Patients could buy one or two vials to test tolerability before moving to the more expensive Kwikpen packs.
This strategy — initially born out of global pen shortages — turned into a masterstroke. It cut the cost barrier for first-time users and allowed physicians to initiate therapy confidently without overburdening patients financially.
“Lilly coming up with vials because they were not getting pens in India because of the demand globally was a masterstroke to cut the cost and get it into a vial format so that they have a first mover advantage,” Kovil said.
In contrast, Wegovy launched only in pen format, forcing patients to buy entire packs upfront. In cases of side effects or intolerance, patients were left with unused, costly pens — a major deterrent in India’s out-of-pocket market.
Neeraj Tulara, diabetologist and founder of Mumbai’s Bookurdoc Specialty Clinics and Medical Centre, said, “Mounjaro is now promoting Kwikpen but they still have the vials available… People like us, when we start Mounjaro, we give one or two vials for one or two weeks and then, when the patient is settled, we start Kwikpen.”
Mounjaro vials come in dosing strength of 2.5 mg vial for about Rs 3,500 and 5 mg vial for about Rs 4,375.
The Kwikpens come in packs of four monthly dosages of once-a-week each and cost between Rs 14,000 and Rs 27,500.
Wegovy is currently priced at Rs 17,345 to Rs 26,050 per pen-filled injection, which comprises a month’s dose of four once-a-week shots.
Novo Nordisk did not respond to ET's request for comment until press time Monday.
Another key factor driving Mounjaro uptake is its superior efficacy in weight loss. It has a weight-loss efficacy of 20-22%, compared with 16-18% for Wegovy, experts said.
Also, while both Mounjaro and Wegovy originated as diabetes drugs, Lilly took a bold step in repositioning Mounjaro as a weight-loss and obesity therapy first, not a diabetes injection. This distinction was crucial in India, where many people view obesity as a lifestyle issue but hesitate to use “diabetes medicine.” Tulara said.
“There is a brand perception and acceptance among many patients about Mounjaro as a weight-loss and obesity drug first rather than a diabetes drug,” he said.
Vyankatesh Shivane, diabetology consultant at Jaslok Hospital, said, “Credit goes to Mounjaro for creating more awareness about obesity and weight management.”
Industry insiders also pointed to executional gaps in Novo Nordisk’s rollout of Wegovy. Frequent salesforce changes and limited local partnerships have impacted its adoption.
“My experience is that there are gaps in Wegovy’s marketing,” Tulara said. “For instance, their representatives keep changing and moving… Mounjaro’s engagement has been steadier in comparison.”
However, Mounjaro’s meteoric rise may plateau once cheaper generics of semaglutide (Wegovy) hit the Indian market, expected by early 2026, experts said.
As price competition intensifies, patients may shift toward lower-cost alternatives, especially in long-term therapy.
“Mounjaro is prescribed more right now because this is the honeymoon period of obesity and a lot of people are looking at weight loss rather than benefits of weight loss. But this will plateau down in the next few months with the generics coming into the market by March,” Kovil said.
Doctors said that while Mounjaro leads on speed, smart marketing and early results, semaglutide still enjoys stronger cardiovascular and renal outcome data — which could sway prescribing trends in patients with comorbidities.
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