How a Mumbai startup stepped up during Covid to disrupt the global biopharma supply chain

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As the Covid-19 pandemic swept across the globe, Indian vaccine makers faced an unexpected bottleneck—not in science or manpower, but in consumables. The single-use bags made of specialised plastic required for mixing and storing vaccine ingredients were in critically short supply. Global suppliers, including Sartorius, Cytiva, and Thermo Fisher, prioritised their home markets, leaving Indian manufacturers scrambling.

Amid this crisis, a young Mumbai-based startup, PharmNXT Biotech, emerged as a lifeline. Founded in 2017 by industry veterans Ankush Kapoor and Sachin Joshi, PharmNXT pivoted from being a distributor of European bioprocessing technologies to becoming a full-fledged manufacturer—building India’s first domestic supply chain for single-use biopharma systems.

The pandemic exposed India's overreliance on imported bioprocessing consumables. "We saw vaccine manufacturers unable to scale up simply because they couldn’t get bags and tubing," said Joshi. "That's when we realized India needed its own ecosystem."

PharmNXT's response was swift. Leveraging their experience at GE Healthcare, the founders launched PharmNXTEkuse, a 40,000 sq. ft. cleanroom facility in Pune. Within months, they began producing Xelta 2D and 3D bags, NXTmix levitating mixers, and filtration systems—critical components for vaccine and biologic drug production. In fact they immediately began supplying to Serum Institute of India (SII) for their Covishield vaccine.

Biologics including biosimilar drugs remain prohibitively expensive, with treatments costing upwards of Rs 30,000 per vial. By localizing production and cutting costs by 35–40%, PharmNXT is helping Indian pharma companies make these therapies more accessible.

"Only a fraction of India's population can afford biologics," said Kapoor. "We want to change that."

Single-use systems are essentially disposable kits for drug manufacturing. Instead of cleaning bulky steel tanks between batches, manufacturers use sterile plastic bags and tubes that are discarded after use. This not only reduces contamination risk but also saves time, water, and energy—key advantages during a pandemic when speed and safety are paramount.

PharmNXT's products are now used in the production of monoclonal antibodies, insulin analogs, mRNA vaccines, and CAR-T therapies—all of which saw surging demand during Covid.

PharmNXT's rapid scale-up during the pandemic helped Indian vaccine makers meet domestic and export demand. Today, the company supplies to 14 countries, including Singapore, South Korea, and the US, and has launched over 1,00,000 SKUs. It remains profitable and bootstrapped, with no external equity funding.

"We're not just solving a supply problem—we're redefining what Indian biotech can do," said Joshi. "Our products are now audited and approved by global pharma giants."

PharmNXT is now investing in next-gen therapies, including cell and gene therapy, and developing bioreactor bags and containment systems for highly potent drugs. The company is open to strategic partnerships to accelerate its global footprint but remains focused on innovation and affordability.

"The pandemic was a wake-up call," said Joshi. "We're building not just products, but a resilient platform for the future of medicine."