For many young adults in India, the fastest route to shedding kilograms isn’t the gym—it’s a pill. Once prescribed for type 2 diabetes, drugs such as Rybelsus, Ozempic and Mounjaro are now at the centre of India’s growing weight-loss market.
When Anoop Kumar, a 27-year-old marketing professional in Delhi, started using Rybelsus, he thought it was just another step in his weight-loss journey. “I started in June and lost 10 kilograms by August,” he says. “Then I relied on self-control, gained the weight back by November, and restarted in December. The side effects have been gastric issues, high acidity, and at one point, it even burnt my throat lining. Bloating is constant. I was aware of the risks—the box comes with a detailed pamphlet, but it still felt like the fastest way to get results.”
What…