Eli lily’s Mounjaro
| Photo Credit:
GEORGE FREY
The upward trajectory of weight-loss and diabetes drugs continues, as Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro clocks sales of over ₹100 crore in December 2025 – making it three months on a trot, according to industry data.
The multinational drugmaker holds pole position, clocking ₹105 crore in sales (December), besides total sales of ₹601 crore, a Pharmarack report said. While medical practitioners vouch for the “good science” behind recently launched weight-loss products like Mounjaro and Wegovy (semaglutide) from Novo Nordisk, there is concern from some quarters on whether medical or cosmetic reasons were driving sales. Globally, for example, diabetes drug Ozempic became a household name after celebrities spoke about its weight-loss feature.
“There is a complete disparity in the number of prescriptions and the sales,” alleges Dr Rajiv Kovil, senior diabetologist with Zandra Healthcare, commenting on the sales spike of Mounjaro. Concerned that the product was being promoted by unqualified people through social media, Kovil said, it was being sold as part of a package. The Government needs to act on the wrongful promotion of the product by those not qualified, he said.
“It’s not like a paracetamol, which can be…given without a prescription,” says Kovil. The product should be prescribed only by the designated expert, “it is not for cosmetic weight loss, it’s for chronic weight management,” he adds. Pointing to the social media campaign and billboards with people talking about obesity, he said, “You are indirectly and surrogately selling a product… that itself is in poor taste, according to me.” And that is not the way “to sell a very good …scientific product,” he adds.
Making a larger point on prescriptions, he said, “every prescribed molecule need(s) to be prescribed for the validity of the prescription,” whether it is semaglutide or Mounjaro, or an antibiotic.
Dr David Chandy, Director (Endocrinology), Sir HN Reliance Hospital, observed that people with obesity now have a powerful and effective option for weightloss in Mounjaro. Misuse should be curbed, he said, by ensuring that qualified experts prescribe it, as should be the case with any drug.
Eli Lilly was contacted by businessline for its insight on the increased sales of the product, a response is awaited.
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Published on January 6, 2026
