Elon Musk’s Tesla revs up for big India debut; check details here

Elon Musk-led Tesla is set to launch its first showroom in India next week, choosing Mumbai as its entry point, reported newswire Reuters, citing a launch invitation to the media. The carmaker has already brought in $1 million worth of vehicles and merchandise, signalling its debut in the world’s third-largest automobile market, the report said.

The Tesla outlet will be located in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) commercial business district. Elon Musk-led Tesla had signed a lease agreement for its maiden showroom in March 2025.

Publicly accessible customs data from January to June revealed that Tesla brought nearly $1 million worth of vehicles, chargers, and accessories into India, primarily sourced from China and the United States, the report said. Among the imports were six units of the popular Model Y—five valued at $32,500 each and one long-range variant priced at $46,000—along with multiple Superchargers, it said.

Tesla is also hiring for at least 40 positions in India, including for a store manager role in Mumbai and several other roles in Pune.

In June, Union minister of Heavy Industries H. D. Kumaraswamy said that Elon Musk-led Tesla is not interested in manufacturing cars in India and is only looking to set up two showrooms.

The Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Electric Passenger Cars in India (SPMEPCI) slashes import duty to 15% from 100% for EVs with cost, insurance and freight value of $35,000 or more.

The government’s EV manufacturing scheme, which critics argued was tailor-made for Tesla, slashes import duty to 15% from 100% for EVs with cost, insurance and freight value of $35,000 or more.

Under the new policy, automakers are required to invest at least ₹4,150 crore or $500 million to set up a new EV manufacturing facility in India within three years. A localisation of 25% is to be achieved by the third year and 50% by the fifth year. The duty foregone on the total number of EVs allowed for import would be limited to the investment made or ₹6,484 crore. Kumaraswamy had said that Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Skoda Auto, Hyundai, and Kia have shown interest to manufacture EVs under the new scheme.

In February, U.S. president Donald Trump said Musk's plans to bring Tesla to India would be 'unfair' to the United States. “If he (Musk) built the factory in India, that’s okay, but that’s unfair to us.  It’s very unfair,” Trump said on 'The Sean Hannity Show'. “Every country in the world takes advantage of us, and they do it with tariffs... It’s impossible for him (Musk) to sell a car, practically, in, as an example, India,” he said. Musk, who was also on the show, agreed with Trump and said that India imposes 100% import duty on cars.