Sun Pharma elevates Aalok Shanghvi as COO

Sun Pharma, India’s pharmaceutical giant, has elevated Aalok Shanghvi, the son of Dilip Shanghvi, chairman and managing director of Sun Pharma, as the chief operating officer (COO) of the company, according to the company’s announcement today.

Aalok Shanghvi has been serving as whole-time director and executive vice-president, emerging markets, global generic R&D, global business development (generics), operations and API (Active Pharmaceuticals Ingredients) since June 2023.

He majored in Cellular and Molecular Biology at the University of Michigan – Ann Arbor, the company notes.

The new COO joined Sun Pharma in 2006 and has stepped into diverse roles including marketing, R&D, project management, purchase & communications. In 2014, he took charge as the head of emerging markets business, overseeing 80 countries covering Africa, the Middle East, APAC, Eastern Europe, CIS, and Latam, the pharma giant adds.

Emerging markets business plays a vital role in Sun Pharma’s global revenues, accounting for around 18% of its global revenue. He later expanded his leadership portfolio to oversee global generic R&D, global business development (Generics), operations and API functions.

The pharma giant recently reported a 15% rise in net profit, amounting to ₹2,903 crore in the quarter ending December 2024, up from ₹2,523.75 crore YoY. Revenue from operations reached ₹13,675.46 crore during the same quarter, up from ₹12,380.7 crore in the same quarter of the previous year.