Lava survives, but is yet to find its signal

Lava International has survived the shakeout that wiped out several homegrown smartphone brands, but has yet to turn that resilience into a meaningful market comeback. With a market share of around 1% in 2025, against 6-8% at its peak a decade ago, the Indian handset maker is now looking to strengthen its product portfolio and deepen local manufacturing. However, competing with global brands on technology, pricing and consumer recall remains a challenge.

“As the smartphone market matured, scale became increasingly important. Global brands operating across multiple markets could spread their investments in R&D, technology partnerships,