Nalinikanth Gollagunta, CEO, Mahindra & Mahindra Automotive DivisionIndia’s electric vehicle market has entered a pivotal inflection point, with category-defining products and rising consumer acceptance signalling the beginning of mainstream adoption, said Nalinikanth Gollagunta, CEO, Mahindra & Mahindra Automotive Division, at the ETAuto EV Conclave 2025. Reflecting on the past 18–24 months, he described the early EV phase as one filled with hesitation, limited product choices and global scepticism, but also as a period that laid the foundation for innovation-led growth.
Until early FY23, India’s EV penetration stood at around 2%, constrained by concerns over range, battery life, charging time and price. “Car buying in India is an emotional journey, not a mathematical one,” he said, adding that the industry misread the market by emphasising cost savings and TCO spreadsheets instead of aspiration, design and desirability. Early EVs felt practical but lacked excitement.
EV adoption in India
This narrative shifted as Mahindra and other OEMs began launching EVs engineered from the ground up rather than adapted from ICE platforms. “EVs give us a platform to build innovation,” Gollagunta said, stressing that design and emotion must lead the category while practicality continues to evolve in the background.
Mahindra addressed structural industry barriers—range anxiety, battery uncertainty and fast-charging limitations—through improved engineering. The impact has been significant: within seven months of launch, the company’s two EVs combined secured the No. 1 revenue market share in the category, delivering more than 30,000 vehicles.
Consumer behaviour also highlights growing acceptance. Nearly two-thirds of Mahindra EVs are used as primary cars, with 65 per cent clocking more than 1,000 km a month. Some customers have already crossed 20,000 km in under a year. Instances of 800 km drives in a day or 3,000 km over four days underline growing confidence in long-distance EV capability.
Gollagunta added that every new EV launch from rival OEMs is expanding the segment instead of fragmenting it. The SUV-EV category is growing at nearly 200 per cent, signalling strong appetite for aspirational electric mobility when compelling products reach the market.
Key drivers in the future
For the next phase of adoption, he outlined three critical levers:
• Visible, reliable highway charging infrastructure
• Social signalling and storytelling to showcase real EV journeys
• Relentless innovation, especially as Chinese OEMs raise the global benchmark
“If we want to stay on top in India — and take this global — we have to keep raising the bar,” he said.
