Cheaper, generic semaglutide grabs half of India’s market but Novo Nordisk holds its ground

Generic semaglutide drugs have rapidly captured half of India’s market by value within a month of launch, while Novo Nordisk’s branded products continue to retain demand. (Image via Freepik)The market for the blockbuster diabetes and anti-obesity medicine semaglutide in India is split evenly between the Novo Nordisk’s innovator molecule and the generic versions that were launched just over a month ago, according to pharmaceutical market data. Both the innovator and generic molecules generated Rs 44 crore sales in the month of April. With generics being priced much lower, by volume, the innovator molecule sold 32,000 units as compared to 1.37 lakh units of generic drugs.“The innovator molecules have more or less managed to retain their market, yet there has been a significant growth in the generic versions of the drug. What this essentially means is that the generic drugs have expanded the market instead of cutting into the market for the innovator molecules,” said Sheetal Sapale, vice president (commercial), Pharmarack. The big generic company to gain When it comes to the generic version of semaglutide, Torrent pharmaceuticals has emerged as the leader, capturing 38% of the market. This is followed by Zydus with 10% and Lupin with 9%. While this market share reflects both injectable and oral versions of the drug, the trend remains similar when it comes to injectable versions only, with Torrent still leading with 28% of the market share. The high share of Torrent pharmaceuticals is because it is the only company to enter the oral segment with its brands Semalix and Sembolic. Most of the other companies stuck to injectable semaglutide. Expansion of the market While the anti-obesity GLP-1 drugs by Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly entered the Indian market only in 2025, just a year before the expiry of Novo Nordisk’s patent, the generic versions have not cut into the sales of the innovator products. Instead, they have created their own market, the data shows. Eli Lilly’s Tirzepatide — which uses two receptors GLP-1 and GIP and has been shown to lead to more weight loss than semaglutide — continues to be the market leader. A slight dip in its sales was noted in the month of March when the generic versions were being launched, but it has almost recouped its share. Tirzepatide sales worth Rs 135 crores were recorded in February, dropping to Rs 114 crore in March, and again bouncing back to R 121 crores.Story continues below this ad The semaglutide market, on the other hand, has expanded from Rs 48 crore in February to Rs 88 crore in April. Among this, the share of the innovator semaglutide products, such as Ozempic, Wegovy, and Rybelsus, has gone down from Rs 48 crore in February to Rs 44 crore in April. The sales of the generic versions of the drug have increased from 0 in February to Rs 44 crore in April, according to market insights provided by Pharmarack. “While the value of the market is similar for the innovator and generic products, the volume is much higher for the generic versions. The volume impact of generics, along with strong unit growth indicates increased affordability along with aggressive promotion expanding the market,” said Sapale. “This also shows that some of the doctors are sticking to the innovator molecules for patients who are able to afford it,” she added. Anonna Dutt is a Principal Correspondent who writes primarily on health at the Indian Express. She reports on myriad topics ranging from the growing burden of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and hypertension to the problems with pervasive infectious conditions. She reported on the government’s management of the Covid-19 pandemic and closely followed the vaccination programme. Her stories have resulted in the city government investing in high-end tests for the poor and acknowledging errors in their official reports. Dutt also takes a keen interest in the country’s space programme and has written on key missions l