Intermission

Epizódy

• Intermission E02: Bajaj Finance 11.05.2026 4h 25min

  Sell a Bajaj scooter, finance their EMIs. For years, that was the entire purpose of Bajaj Auto Finance. But consumers in India wanted much more. They outfitted their homes with new television sets, refrigerators, and washing machines. They wanted iPhones, hair transplants, fitness equipment and more.Lending for those hinted at a much larger opportunity. And the Bajaj group seized it. 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. 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.This is the story of how that happened. Tune in!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/Additional material: 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=0aa636ff1f8d44f0The Harvard Business case study on Bajaj Finance: https://store.hbr.org/product/bajaj-finance-building-an-omnipresent-financial-services-firm/523040?sku=523040-PDF-ENGInside Bajaj Finance’s aggressive call-to-sell-loan strategy: https://the-ken.com/story/why-you-cant-ignore-bajaj-finances-call/Credits for chapter images: Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Group, Business Today/Bajaj Group, Fortune/Bajaj Group and Wikipedia.Credits: Hosts: Rohin Dharmakumar, Seetharaman GPodcast Producer: Vidhatri Rao Director: Vijay Subramaniam, Video Producer: Vishnu SSound Design and Technical Producer: Rajiv CNLead Researcher: Raghav BatraArt Direction: Kavipriya OGData Visualisation: Anuj DebnathProduction Agency: Nesara FilmsCreative Direction: Sunayana KashyapDoP: Subash KPMotion Graphics:⁠⁠ Karthik NVideo Editing team: Sarthak Pujar, Tejas Kulkarni, Jayesh SahuColourist: Akhil RajGraphic Design and Illustrations: Anusha SarahOn-Set Production: Chaitanya, Veeresh and teamAudio: ⁠⁠Murthy and teamSpot Edit: GirishSet Design: Saanvi, ThejaswiniPromotions: Pranav Pate, Aakash Raju, Adhavan RKWriter & Editor (Microsite): Brady NgProduct Design (Microsite): Praveen Gopal Krishnan, Ritika Sanikere, Sushmita Vavilala, Karan Kumar'Intermission' Title Track by Sameer RahatAbout Intermission: Intermission dives into the histories of iconic Indian companies. It was produced with vital support and assistance from Zerodha, our sponsor for season 1. Disclosure: Zerodha’s perennial fund, Rainmatter Capital, is an investor in The Ken.About The Ken: The Ken is India’s first subscriber-only business journalism platform reporting on business, technology, and startups in India. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠the-ken.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ and explore our stories, newsletters, podcasts and more. Follow The Ken on socials: Instagram: instagram.com/theken_web  LinkedIn: https://in.linkedin.com/company/the-kenTwitter: https://x.com/thekenweb/
• Intermission E01 - Asian Paints (PART 1) 23.03.2026 2h 55min

  Asian Paints was founded in 1942 by four young Gujaratis in a Bombay garage. Today, it controls more than half of India's paint market. This is the story of how that happened. The company was among the first to tap into the rural market, become a technology company before most people understood what that meant, crack the supply chain, and bring about a new era of Indian advertising.Now, Asian Paints is being met with renewed competition and aggression from Birla Opus, JSW Dulux and Berger Paints. Understanding why this market is so hard to take requires understanding of how it was built.—We also have an interactive webpage exploring Asian Paints' history with reading lists, infographics, and source notes: the-ken.com/intermission.—The full episode runs 6 hours and is split into two parts on podcast platforms.—About Intermission: Intermission, produced by The Ken, dives deep into the histories of iconic Indian companies. Intermission was produced with vital support and assistance from Zerodha, our season sponsor. Disclosure: Rainmatter Foundation is an investor in The Ken's parent company.—About The Ken:The Ken is India's first subscriber-only business journalism platform reporting on business, technology, startups and healthcare across India and Southeast Asia. Since our inception, we’ve published thousands of stories that have been widely discussed, debated and referenced.  Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠the-ken.com⁠⁠⁠⁠, and explore our stories, newsletters, podcasts and more.—Follow us on our socials:Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/theken_web/⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ken/⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/thekenweb⁠⁠⁠⁠—We would also like to thank Anupam Gupta, the writer of "The Rise of Asian Paints: Champaklal Choksey, a Doyen of the Indian Paints Industry" (Penguin India, 2024). You can buy the book here: https://www.penguin.co.in/book/the-rise-of-asian-paints/—CreditsHosts: Rohin Dharmakumar, Seetharaman GPodcast Producer: Vidhatri Rao Video Producers: Vijay Subramaniam, Vishnu S, Rajiv CNAudio Engineer: Rajiv CNLead Researcher: Raghav BatraArt Direction: Kavipriya OGData Visualisation: Anuj DebnathProduction Agency: Nesara FilmsCreative Direction: Sunayana KashyapDoP: Subash KPEditing and Motion Graphics:⁠⁠ Karthik NGraphic Design and Illustrations: Anusha SarahColorist: Pranav BhatVideo Editing team: Sarthak Pujar, Himanshi, Jayesh SahuOn-Set Production: Veeresh, Chaitanya and teamAudio: ⁠⁠Murthy and teamSet Design: Hritika, Saanvi, ThejaswiniPromotions: Pranav Pate, Aakash Raju, Adhavan RKWriter & Editor (Microsite): Brady NgProduct Design (Microsite): Praveen Gopal Krishnan, Ritika Sanikere, Sushmita Vavilala, Karan Kumar
• Intermission E01 - Asian Paints (PART 2) 23.03.2026 3h 25min

  This is Part 2 of Intermission's episode on Asian Paints. We'd urge you to listen to Part 1 first to get a full picture of the company's early history and main bets. —Asian Paints was founded in 1942 by four young Gujaratis in a Bombay garage. Today, it controls more than half of India's paint market. This is the story of how that happened. The company was among the first to tap into the rural market, become a technology company before most people understood what that meant, crack the supply chain, and bring about a new era of Indian advertising.Now, Asian Paints is being met with renewed competition and aggression from Birla Opus, JSW Dulux and Berger Paints. Understanding why this market is so hard to take requires understanding of how it was built.—We also have an interactive webpage exploring Asian Paints' history with reading lists, infographics, and source notes: the-ken.com/intermission.—The full episode runs 6 hours and is split into two parts on podcast platforms.—About Intermission: Intermission, produced by The Ken, dives deep into the histories of iconic Indian companies. Intermission was produced with vital support and assistance from Zerodha, our season sponsor. Disclosure: Rainmatter Foundation is an investor in The Ken's parent company.—About The Ken:The Ken is India's first subscriber-only business journalism platform reporting on business, technology, startups and healthcare across India and Southeast Asia. Since our inception, we’ve published thousands of stories that have been widely discussed, debated and referenced.  Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠the-ken.com⁠⁠⁠⁠, and explore our stories, newsletters, podcasts and more.—Follow us on our socials:Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/theken_web/⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ken/⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/thekenweb⁠⁠⁠⁠—We would also like to thank Anupam Gupta, the writer of "The Rise of Asian Paints: Champaklal Choksey, a Doyen of the Indian Paints Industry" (Penguin India, 2024). You can buy the book here: https://www.penguin.co.in/book/the-rise-of-asian-paints/—CreditsHosts: Rohin Dharmakumar, Seetharaman GPodcast Producer: Vidhatri Rao Video Producers: Vijay Subramaniam, Vishnu S, Rajiv CNAudio Engineer: Rajiv CNLead Researcher: Raghav BatraArt Direction: Kavipriya OGData Visualisation: Anuj DebnathProduction Agency: Nesara FilmsCreative Direction: Sunayana KashyapDoP: Subash KPEditing and Motion Graphics:⁠⁠ Karthik NGraphic Design and Illustrations: Anusha SarahColorist: Pranav BhatVideo Editing team: Sarthak Pujar, Himanshi, Jayesh SahuOn-Set Production: Veeresh, Chaitanya and teamAudio: ⁠⁠Murthy and teamSet Design: Hritika, Saanvi, ThejaswiniPromotions: Pranav Pate, Aakash Raju, Adhavan RKWriter & Editor (Microsite): Brady NgProduct Design (Microsite): Praveen Gopal Krishnan, Ritika Sanikere, Sushmita Vavilala, Karan Kumar