by The Ken
Every great Indian enterprise has a story worth telling in full. With Intermission, The Ken's flagship long-form podcast, hosts Rohin Dharmakumar and Seetharaman G do exactly that—tracing the origins, turning points, and defining strategies of the companies that shaped modern India.
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Publishing Since
3/22/2026
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June 28, 2026
<p><br>Stream a video, send a message, call a loved one. For nearly 474 million Indians, that connection runs through Bharti Airtel.</p><p><br>Over three decades, the company has made it through price wars, near-bankruptcy, a botched overseas acquisition, and two incursions from Reliance. Each time, it weathered the crisis and came back stronger. Investors who held on through every crisis have been rewarded with returns that match the best businesses in India. </p><p><br>But the forces that shaped Airtel — regulation, technology, and competition — have never stopped moving. Jio is back, this time with a $110 billion bet on AI and data centres. The hyperscalers are customers today and competitors tomorrow. And the telecom industry is shifting from minutes to bytes to tokens. </p><p><br>At the centre of it all is Sunil Bharti Mittal, a founder who operates with the intensity of someone still trying to prove himself, even after building a company worth more than $100 billion. He turns 70 in 2027. He wants to raise his family's stake in Airtel from 40% to 51% — a Rs 1 lakh crore buyback he believes can be funded through dividends and share repurchases over three to four years. The question that now hangs over Airtel is what happens to it when Mittal is no longer at its core.</p><p><br>Airtel has survived every version of telecom so far. But it hasn't fully solved its three-body problem yet.</p><p><br>Where does it go from here?</p><p><br></p><p><br>We also have an interactive webpage to explore the history of Airtel Finance with reading lists, infographics and source notes: <a href="https://the-ken.com/intermission/the-unkillable-network-bharti-airtel/">https://the-ken.com/intermission/the-unkillable-network-bharti-airtel/</a><br> <br>You can also watch the episode on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U</p><p>----------</p><p>Chapters: </p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U">00:00</a> — Introduction<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=249s">4:09</a>— Chapter 1: Ludhiana — India's industrial Manchester<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=960s">16:00</a> — Chapter 2: Delhi — School of power & hard knocks<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=2467s">41:07</a> — Chapter 3: Policy pivot and partnership model<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=4167s">1:09:27</a> — Chapter 4: The Reliance juggernaut's first attack<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=5465s">1:31:05</a> — Chapter 5: Akhil Gupta, the 2000s, and the art of financial judo<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=6882s">1:54:42</a> — Chapter 6: The Singaporean pillar<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=7411s">2:03:31</a> — Chapter 7: Gopal Vittal, the flawless executor from HUL<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=8976s">2:29:36</a> — Chapter 8: The Africa no-yes-no-yes story<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=9902s">2:45:02</a> — Chapter 9: The Airtel culture<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=10787s">2:59:47</a> — Chapter 10: The zero rating debacle<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=11487s">3:11:27</a> — Chapter 11: The three-body problem and the 2G scam<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=12118s">3:21:58</a> — Chapter 12: The Reliance juggernaut is now "Jio"<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_dONpkY7-U&t=13924s">3:52:04</a> — Chapter 13: Airtel after/without Sunil Mittal</p><p>----------</p><p>Credits: </p><p>Hosts: Rohin Dharmakumar, Seetharaman G<br>Podcast Producer: Vidhatri Rao <br>Director: Vijay Subramaniam<br>Video Producer: Vishnu S<br>Sound Design and Technical Producer: Rajiv CN<br>Lead Researcher: Raghav Batra<br>Art Direction: Kavipriya OG<br>Data Visualisation: Anuj Debnath</p><p>Production Agency: Nesara Films<br>Creative Direction: Sunayana Kashyap<br>DoP: Subash KP<br>Animation: Karthik N<br>Video Editing team: Sarthak Pujar, Jayesh Sahu<br>Colourist: Akhil Raj<br>Graphic Design and Styleframes: Anusha Sarah<br>On-Set Production: Veeresh and team<br>Audio: Murthy and team<br>Spot Edit: Girish<br>Set Design: Saanvi Joshi, Thejaswini</p><p>Promotions: Pranav Pate, Adhavan RK<br>Writer & Editor (Microsite): Brady Ng<br>Product Design (Microsite): Praveen Gopal Krishnan, Ritika Sanikere, Sushmita Vavilala, Karan Kumar</p><p>'Intermission' Title Track by Sameer Rahat</p><p>----------</p><p>About Intermission: </p><p>Intermission dives into the histories of iconic Indian companies. It was produced with vital support and assistance from Zerodha, our sponsor for season 1. <br>Disclosure: Zerodha’s perennial fund, Rainmatter Capital, is an investor in The Ken.</p><p>About The Ken: <br>The Ken is India’s first subscriber-only business journalism platform reporting on business, technology, and startups in India. Visit <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqblg0ZkJIQTFsWkdZblVvN05SUnN6X3FVaUFpd3xBQ3Jtc0ttMWk4Sm16cnNDNXJ6dFN2bWRhV3o2NU5WVGRGekJTY3VIdEo2S3dfVTFhMnlJVHRnMlhOT2paZjJsdklOU3RxRGtXTUlPWkl5OGRDOGdNVUVqM003N3NjNUFBdEt5WVdDWkJIem1FcWRUVl9uTzBURQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fthe-ken.com%2F&v=O_dONpkY7-U">https://the-ken.com</a> and explore our stories, newsletters, podcasts and more. </p><p>Follow The Ken on socials: </p><p>Instagram: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbGFFYk15cFVkYjBTNHlzblpVN0EzR0NVUDBIUXxBQ3Jtc0tuY3ZKYi00UlU3dnRPUmQxYzVZUXhFM3UxTlNEamFhWW9Fb0hzRDVkY0tzWmgwdHhaNTNiZDhBcHQ1b05XNDliY1kxeXlSVlNjUHRZcUwyUzdnVGF1aWc0TWMyOXNRUm5qUVUzeVBOSkNtOGJxQWw2UQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Ftheken_web%2F&v=O_dONpkY7-U"> / theken_web </a><br>LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbW5SSUFfRUhXdGFGTlhFb210QXhCeG56RnVKQXxBQ3Jtc0trRWVOZ3dBR0UtQmEta3VCNjRrQzhXb2hWRDJGSzlWamdDT2xkWk1fMXdsYzlHLU15enZkb2trNGdtdV9Sd0JPN196VFVZVVY0WEhyeU52R1h5Tnh2QzZxc3drSTBFUTNQLU9Id1R4TEltOExSbkFBMA&q=https%3A%2F%2Fin.linkedin.com%2Fcompany%2Fthe-ken%2F&v=O_dONpkY7-U"> / the-ken </a><br>Twitter: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbDhYTnhELVY2WHBhRG5Zc3VGdFltRzQ3OTh2d3xBQ3Jtc0tuT0NSUi1vWmFwUEcyaHhyX1B1ZGVGemhoWWhtSzBxVl9yTDMyYnBOTEQ4NXdaT1g1ejNwWnFFcWpBdDFuZEVLYW5WTFNhOG9aLXV4RXZhd2RGZHNIdVpqdEJXX0lRbzU2eDVkNzl6TXN3WlRTdVRUSQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fx.com%2Fthekenweb%2F&v=O_dONpkY7-U">https://x.com/thekenweb/</a></p>
June 27, 2026
<p>Dozens of companies entered the Indian telecom market in 1994. <br>Almost all of them are gone. </p><p>One is still standing — and it's how a billion people connect today.</p><p> Episode 3 of Intermission on Bharti Airtel goes live on June 29. </p>
May 11, 2026
<p><br></p><p>Sell a Bajaj scooter, finance their EMIs. For years, that was the entire purpose of Bajaj Auto Finance. </p><p>But consumers in India wanted much more. </p><p>They outfitted their homes with new television sets, refrigerators, and washing machines. They wanted iPhones, hair transplants, fitness equipment and more.</p><p>Lending for those hinted at a much larger opportunity. And the Bajaj group seized it. </p><p>Bajaj Auto Finance became Bajaj Finance. A legacy auto-financing arm went on to create India’s consumer credit infrastructure, shaping how millions buy things. </p><p>Today, Bajaj Finance manages a loan book of over Rs 5 lakh crore, serves more than 119 million customers, and is valued roughly Rs 6 lakh crore. It is twice as large as Bajaj Auto, the parent company it was spun out of.</p><p>This is the story of how that happened. Tune in!</p><p>Our team has built an interactive webpage for Bajaj Finance. It’s a research guide to this episode. Check it out here: https://the-ken.com/story/why-you-cant-ignore-bajaj-finances-call/</p><p><strong>Additional material: <br></strong><br></p><p><a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/70JSD3LIE16jcsGSjhjtr9?go=1&sp_cid=e2ae99a929ea25663dee6c3cf825b11d&utm_source=embed_player_p&utm_medium=desktop&si=qTrmTQ0cS-GUeNDEct3COw&nd=1&dlsi=0aa636ff1f8d44f0">Saurabh Mukerjea’s analysis of Bajaj Finance: https://open.spotify.com/episode/70JSD3LIE16jcsGSjhjtr9?go=1&sp_cid=e2ae99a929ea25663dee6c3cf825b11d&utm_source=embed_player_p&utm_medium=desktop&si=qTrmTQ0cS-GUeNDEct3COw&nd=1&dlsi=0aa636ff1f8d44f0<br></a><br></p><p><a href="https://store.hbr.org/product/bajaj-finance-building-an-omnipresent-financial-services-firm/523040?sku=523040-PDF-ENG">The Harvard Business case study on Bajaj Finance: https://store.hbr.org/product/bajaj-finance-building-an-omnipresent-financial-services-firm/523040?sku=523040-PDF-ENG<br></a><br></p><p><a href="https://the-ken.com/story/why-you-cant-ignore-bajaj-finances-call/">Inside Bajaj Finance’s aggressive call-to-sell-loan strategy: https://the-ken.com/story/why-you-cant-ignore-bajaj-finances-call/<br></a><br></p><p><strong>Credits for chapter images</strong>: </p><p>Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Group, Business Today/Bajaj Group, Fortune/Bajaj Group and Wikipedia.</p><p><strong>Credits: <br></strong><br></p><p>Hosts: Rohin Dharmakumar, Seetharaman G</p><p>Podcast Producer: Vidhatri Rao </p><p>Director: Vijay Subramaniam, </p><p>Video Producer: Vishnu S</p><p>Sound Design and Technical Producer: Rajiv CN</p><p>Lead Researcher: Raghav Batra</p><p>Art Direction: Kavipriya OG</p><p>Data Visualisation: Anuj Debnath</p><p><br></p><p>Production Agency: Nesara Films</p><p>Creative Direction: Sunayana Kashyap</p><p>DoP: Subash KP</p><p>Motion Graphics: Karthik N</p><p>Video Editing team: Sarthak Pujar, Tejas Kulkarni, Jayesh Sahu</p><p>Colourist: Akhil Raj</p><p>Graphic Design and Illustrations: Anusha Sarah</p><p>On-Set Production: Chaitanya, Veeresh and team</p><p>Audio: Murthy and team</p><p>Spot Edit: Girish</p><p>Set Design: Saanvi, Thejaswini</p><p><br></p><p>Promotions: Pranav Pate, Aakash Raju, Adhavan RK</p><p>Writer & Editor (Microsite): Brady Ng</p><p>Product Design (Microsite): Praveen Gopal Krishnan, Ritika Sanikere, Sushmita Vavilala, Karan Kumar</p><p>'Intermission' Title Track by Sameer Rahat</p><p><strong>About Intermission: <br></strong><br></p><p>Intermission dives into the histories of iconic Indian companies. It was produced with vital support and assistance from Zerodha, our sponsor for season 1. </p><p>Disclosure: Zerodha’s perennial fund, Rainmatter Capital, is an investor in The Ken.<br><br></p><p><strong>About The Ken:</strong> </p><p>The Ken is India’s first subscriber-only business journalism platform reporting on business, technology, and startups in India. Visit <a href="http://the-ken.com">the-ken.com</a> and explore our stories, newsletters, podcasts and more. </p><p><br><strong>Follow The Ken on socials: </strong></p><p><br></p><p>Instagram: <a href="http://instagram.com/theken_web">instagram.com/theken_web </a> </p><p>LinkedIn: <a href="https://in.linkedin.com/company/the-ken">https://in.linkedin.com/company/the-ken</a></p><p>Twitter: <a href="https://x.com/thekenweb/">https://x.com/thekenweb/</a></p><p><br></p>
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Every great Indian enterprise has a story worth telling in full.
With Intermission, The Ken's flagship long-form podcast, hosts Rohin Dharmakumar and Seetharaman G do exactly that—tracing the origins, turning points, and defining strategies of the companies that shaped modern India.
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