India No Longer a Backup, but Central to Global Auto Strategy: Priya Kapur

India is no longer a fallback manufacturing base for global OEMs. It is increasingly central to global automotive strategy, driven by engineering depth, supply chain resilience, and growing electronics capability.

Delivering the keynote address at the 60th ACMA Excellence Awards and 11th Technology Summit in New Delhi, Priya Kapur, Non-Executive Director, Sona Comstar, said India’s automotive ecosystem has transformed from cost competitiveness to capability leadership.

“The automotive sector has long been India’s most credible manufacturing ambassador,” she said, adding that India is now seen as integral to global supply chain strategies rather than as a backup option.

Kapur traced this broader industry shift through Sona Comstar’s own transformation. Founded in 1995 as a precision forgings supplier operating on a build-to-print model, the company restructured after a severe financial crisis around FY15 and reinvented itself as a global mobility technology player.

From being a single-product differential gear maker in 2015, Sona Comstar today offers over 22 products spanning driveline systems, traction motors, sensors, and advanced mobility technologies. Over 70 percent of its automotive revenues now come from global markets, with North America contributing nearly 40 percent.

A defining pivot, Kapur said, was the early bet on electrification. In FY25, battery electric vehicle programmes accounted for 36 percent of the company’s product revenue, while 77 percent of its USD 2.8 billion order book is weighted towards EV programmes.

Crucially, much of the engineering behind these programmes is rooted in India. “India is no longer only manufacturing EV components. India is designing propulsion solutions for global mobility platforms,” she said.

The company has also strengthened its electronics capabilities through acquisitions such as Comstar, which added electrical, electronics, and software systems, and Novelic, which expanded its radar sensor and perception technology portfolio.

Kapur emphasised that competing globally now requires technology ownership, deep R&D strength, and system-level thinking. Sona Comstar invests around 3 percent of its revenue in R&D and owns core technologies used in product development.

For India’s wider auto component industry, the message was clear. The shift is no longer from domestic to export. It is from components to systems, from volume to value, and from short-term gains to long-cycle technology bets.

“Make in India is no longer an aspiration. It is a proven capability statement,” Kapur concluded.