New Delhi, Aug. 15 -- In 1996, when Abhishek Khaitan joined Rampur Distillery & Chemical Co. Ltd, his family's liquor business, it had "its back against the wall".

The company had a turnover of Rs.70-80 crore, Rs.50 crore debt and mounting losses. Founded in 1943, it was one of the country's oldest distilleries with no brands under its own banner, bottling spirits for other brands, and even those contracts had just come to an end. It was a time when liquor giants such as Pernod and Diageo were entering the market and growing, while Rampur Distillery acted and sounded "like a local player".

Twenty-eight years later, that company is Radico Khaitan, the fourth largest liquor company in India by volume and in FY26, it crossed Rs.6,000 crore...