Meet man, set to lead Indian company worth Rs 4 lakh crore as MD after replacing its founder, he is...; business is...

Kirti Ganorkar has been appointed the new managing director (MD) of Sun Pharmaceutical Industries -- India's largest pharma firm. Ganorkar, 58, will take charge of the role from September this year. He succeeds company founder Dilip Shanghvi, who is set to transition to the role of Executive Chairman. Here's all you need to know about Sun Pharma's new MD's educational background and career highlights.

Joined Sun in 90s
Ganorkar, who holds a graduate degree in chemical engineering and a Master of Business Administration (MBA), had joined Sun Pharma nearly three decades ago, in 1996. Since mid-2019, he has led Sun Pharma's India business. Throughout his overall tenure at the pharma giant, Ganorkar has held leadership positions across divisions such as business development, marketing, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), project management, intellectual property (IP), and litigation, among others.
He has also served as a member of the Board of Directors at the United States-based Krystal Biotech Inc. since September 2017.

Key contributions
Over the years, Ganorkar has made a number of key contributions to Sun's growth and expansion in the global pharma market. He is known to have played a crucial role in the acquisition of global rights for the specialty product Ilumya. He also led the firm's entry into Japan besides laying the groundwork for its expansion across European countries.

Ganorkar's statement
"Kirti’s elevation showcases our strong in-house talent pool, ensuring continuity of Sun’s core value systems," founder Shanghvi said in a statement. Meanwhile, Ganorkar said, "Building on the strong foundation laid by Mr. Shanghvi and ably supported by our global leadership team, I’m confident of continued success of the company."

Sun's market value
As of June 2025, Sun Pharma, which is headquartered in Mumbai, has a market capitalization of about USD 47 billion or over Rs 4 lakh crore. It remains India's largest pharma player in terms of market value as well as a major global entity.