Torrent Pharmaceuticals is reevaluating its hiatus from drug research as it reaches a size capable of absorbing the risks associated with long-term pharmaceutical innovation, signalling a strategic shift in Indian pharma giants towards innovation-led growth.
Torrent Pharmaceuticals is reconsidering its long hiatus from drug discovery as the Indian company grows large enough to absorb the risks of research that can take years and still fail, according to managing director Aman Mehta.
Speaking at the third IIMA Healthcare Summit 2026 on Saturday, Mehta said the group had been “almost retired hurt” from the field but was no longer ruling out a return. He argued that drug discovery demands enough scale to withstand repeated setbacks without threatening the business, adding that Torrent is now approaching the point where it can think seriously about that kind of investment.
Mehta placed Torrent’s thinking within a broader shift across Indian pharmaceuticals, saying more companies are trying to build a stronger presence in innovation. He singled out Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals and Zydus Lifesciences as examples of firms that have pushed ahead, with Sun Pharma’s research effort spanning more than three decades and six research centres across India, Israel, the US and Canada, while Glenmark and Zydus have each built reputations around science-led or research-focused strategies.
He said Torrent’s own caution has been shaped by a decade of mergers and acquisitions. The company completed six sizeable deals in that period, and Mehta said four worked because Torrent understood the asset, the business or the market well before moving ahead. In those cases, the company often spent years studying the opportunity first. Two other deals fell short, he said, because the businesses were less familiar.
That experience, Mehta said, has left Torrent with a more disciplined test for capital allocation: analysis alone is not enough, the company also needs financing and a team able to execute. He said the hardest lesson has been understanding the downside before chasing an attractive opportunity, and described a recent near-miss in which Torrent was tempted by what looked like a compelling asset but walked away because it did not know the market well enough. Torrent, which says it has a turnover of Rs 13,980 crores in FY2026 and operates in more than 50 countries, remains a major player in cardiovascular, central nervous system, gastro-intestinal and other specialist therapies.
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