Underdog Ather is the real challenger to legacy two-wheeler makers

and-steady manufacturing startup, pitted against the juggernaut of Bhavish Aggarwal, many wondered whether Ather would ever step out of Ola Electric Ltd's shadow

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Those doubts were laid to rest this year. In the July to September quarter of 2025, Ather crossed Ola Electric in total market capitalization, total sales (over 65,000 versus 52,000 for Ola), and revenue (%899 crore versus Ola’s 690 crore).

Investors have shown faith. Since going public in May, the company’s shares have more than doubled, up more than 130%, compared with a 22% rise in the Nifty Auto index.

Mehta attributes all this to fundamental business principles.

“I’m not going to give you a big revelation here. It’s a pretty obvious answer, Business 101. You double down on your strengths. We are where we are, to whatever degree, because of differentiation. No business can survive without differentiation,” Mehta said in response to a question on what will be the company’s roadmap for the next few months.

Ather counts its product engineering and technology edge as its strengths. The company's sales growth is coming from two sources: its Ather Rizta scooter and its expanding distribution network. By the end of this financial year, the company will have 700 stores and will have expanded beyond its strongholds in southern India.

The company is working on its next phase of growth through the EL platform, which will be manufactured at its new plant in Chattrapati Sambhaji Nagar, the new name of Aurangabad, next year.