Muscle Flexing

M&M has become the first desi automaker to break into the top rung of the car market by striking a chord with the unapologetic aspiration of India's youth

- Yuthika Bhargava

At a Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) showroom in Gurgaon, a man in his early 30s leans over a black Thar. He runs his hand across the rugged dash, checks the upright stance and lingers on the muscular wheel arches. To him, the Thar isn't just a car. It's an extension of his personality.

That alpha appeal has powered M&M's return to the big league. For the first time, an Indian automaker has broken into the top two of the country’s passenger-vehicle (PV) market, overtaking Hyundai and ending the South Korean company’s 17-year hold on the runner-up slot on an annual basis.

The turning point in M&M's comeback didn’t begin in a boardroom; it began with this car. For nearly a decade, executives debated whether the Thar deserved a modern revival.

The old model had a cult status among off-roaders but wasn’t the go-to vehicle for the more cosmopolitan. “It was treated like a passion project, a skunkworks,” recalls a former M&M executive involved in early discussions. “Everyone loved it, but no one was sure it made business sense.”

Finally, Anand Mahindra (now chairman, Mahindra group) stepped in. The result was a Thar that kept its soul but shed its rough edges—still capable off-road, yet comfortable enough to be parked outside a café or in a corporate parking lot.

When the new Thar was launched in November 2020, the response was electric. Waiting lists stretched for months. Buyers such as techies, women drivers and families, who had never considered the brand before, queued for test drives.

Manish Singhania, an M&M dealer in Raipur, saw that shift up close. “We used to sell one or two Thars a month; now we sell 30-40,” he says.