Our journey to make a difference through improved healthcare began with the incorporation of Claris Lifesciences in 1999.

Guided by the philosophy of 'Emotional Pharmacopoeia', which means that a drug is considered suitable for sale only if we are comfortable administering it to our loved ones, our commitment to quality and excellence helped us achieve our motto of saving Earth's most precious resource: human lives.

In 2002, with the aim of targeting international markets through niche and difficult-to-manufacture drugs, Claris entered the Injectables business.

Injectable drugs are administered directly into the bloodstream, bypassing the immune defences associated with the gastrointestinal system. The increasing preference for injectables is directly related to their ability to address challenging medical conditions with an accurate degree of selectivity.

What began as an earnest mission to deliver products that healed better, grew into one of the largest Indian sterile pure play injectables pharmaceutical companies with a presence in 100+ countries worldwide. Our products offering comprised of about 130 products across multiple markets and therapeutic areas. All the products were off-patent products, a significant majority of which were capable of being directly injected into the body and predominantly used in the treatment of critical illnesses.

Claris' state-of-the-art manufacturing campus, spread over 80 acres, hosted our injectables, infusions and API plants, serving patient needs in the areas of Anaesthesia & Analgesia, Clinical Nutrition, Blood Products, Anti-infectives & Anti-fungals, Antibiotics, Renal Care and Oncology.

Our expertise in process technologies such as emulsion and aqueous reflected in our manufacturing range of delivery systems, including glass bottles, vials, ampoules, and non-PVC and PVC bags. The versatility of Claris products and processes, catering to specific geographic requirements, augmented the care provided by government and private hospitals, aid agencies and nursing homes.

Apart from being one of the few emerging market suppliers of injectable products, Claris' expertise in lipid-based technology also made it one of the handful of companies in the world to manufacture Propofol, a front-runner in anaesthesia, and a technically complex product to manufacture.

Propofol is an injectable anaesthetic drug that allows targeted use with extremely quick recovery time, i.e., up to ten minutes, and helps in inducing and regulating anaesthesia levels, especially in major surgeries, without the side effects, such as nausea and vomiting, which are commonly associated with other drugs used for anaesthesia. Our flagship product, Profol/Provive eventually became the top propofol brand in India, with a 55% market share. We also developed a value-added variant, the Propofol MCT-LCT for the European market.

For the Critical Care segment, our product range included TetraHES (tetrastarch) and Hestar (pentastarch), for which we were granted patents in India. Products in this segment are used during or after the surgical conditions or trauma conditions for the treatment or recovery. These plasma volume expanders (PVEs) and blood products are used when the human body loses blood in large quantities. PVEs hold the blood pressure of the body and stabilise the body by restoring the blood volume, water and crucial salts.

We were also one of the few companies in the world to develop Activated Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) such as Hydroxyethyl Starch and Iron Sucrose, a pivotal drug for treatment in renal therapy. In the oncology care segment, we achieved a process first with the manufacturing of products using innovative pegylated liposomal technology. Lipeg, our product which we manufactured using this technology allowed for a targeted delivery of the basic molecule (e.g. doxorubicin) that is cytotoxic or destructive in nature, confining it to the effected cancerous area, thus benefiting the patient through reduced side effects.

Yet another first was the manufacturing of UniKit - a unique and significant delivery system for dry-wet injectable combinations.

Buoyed by the reception of our products, in 2006 the Carlyle Group, one of the world's largest private equity firms, invested $20m in Claris Lifesciences for an 11% stake in the business. In 2009, we entered into a business arrangement with Pfizer Asia Contract Operations Pvt. Ltd. for marketing and supply of 15 Claris-manufactured sterile injectables in the highly regulated USA, Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand markets.

By 2014, our market reach spanned over a 100 countries, including the USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

The first-mover advantage was a critical propellant in the Claris growth story. Our expertise in Novel Drug Delivery Systems (NDDS) provided us with a competitive advantage, which was anchored by a strong Quality by Design approach. Our R&D facility was approved by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, while our manufacturing facilities featured the best of international suppliers, such as the double pass reverse osmosis system from Christ (Switzerland); distillation columns from Stillmas (Italy); manufacturing vessels from Diesel (Germany); SVP manufacturing lines from Robert Bosch (Germany); sterilisers from SBM (Austria); leak testing machines from Breviti (Italy); and cleanrooms from Clestra (France).

As one of the few Indian companies with regulated market capabilities across complex delivery systems and technologies, Claris' manufacturing and quality systems were awarded the toughest of regulatory approvals, including the US FDA, the MHRA (United Kingdom), TGA (Australia), ANVISA (Brasil), ANVIMA (Colombia) and GCC (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates). They were also ISO 9001-2000 and WHO GMP certified.

The USA FDA approval of our injectables manufacturing plant in 2007 made it one of the few-of-its-kind integrated facilities globally, to receive acceptance from the most stringent of regulatory authorities.

We continued to add new products, new geographies and new technologies, with innovative generics remaining the primary focus. Our integrated business model, which was backed by a trained workforce across business divisions, such as regulatory affairs for obtaining product registrations, manufacturing, supply chain management, and sales and marketing, and their deep understanding of the injectables business, allowed us to better control variables in our business processes.

Propelled by an entrepreneurial culture, highly efficient processes and an ambitious team of over 4,000 staffers and workers, the outstanding growth story of Claris Injectables business earned plaudits in India and abroad. Throughout our journey, Claris won numerous awards, the highlight being the India Manufacturing Excellence Award (IMEA), instituted by Frost & Sullivan, for three years in a row; the Indian Drug Manufacturers' Association Quality Excellence Award (IDMA), four times; and the Greentech Safety Award, twice.

At a time when the Indian pharma industry was setting a growth forecast of 15% Claris experienced a consistent four years of year-on-year growth of 48% from 2013 to 2017. In 2017, the global generic Injectables business was sold to Baxter International Inc., USA, (a Fortune 500 American Healthcare company), for $625m (Rs4,237cr).

Claris' rapid success and global legacy was a direct result of our persistent drive for excellence. We began as a small dream, with limited capital and resources. We persevered through some of the worst times of the industry and had the gumption to grow, eventually ranking among world leaders. Our differentiated business model among Indian pharmaceutical companies was due to our focus on a range of complex products that require sophisticated technical processes and quality assurance methods. Our expertise in launching hero products, backed by cutting-edge technology, received an overwhelming response from all the markets we built our presence in, domestic as well as international.

At Claris, our passion for success, is unmistakable.

Our unwavering commitment to finding more effective treatments that improve medical care as well as the overall quality of life for users, guided our foray into infusions in 2003.

Anchored by Claris' 'Emotional Pharmacopoeia' philosophy, which means a drug is considered suitable for sale only if we are comfortable administering it to our loved ones, we began our journey towards putting essential medicines and technologies in the hands of people who help patients and finding the best answers to the challenges they face, by using our strengths in manufacturing excellence and product superiority.

According to the Infusion Nurses Society (INS), an international non-profit organisation and a global authority in infusion therapy, nine of ten patients admitted in hospitals receive infusion therapy during the course of their stay for therapeutic or diagnostic purposes.

Infusions deliver a number of clinical benefits over traditional oral medications, including new and effective treatments for diseases that typically have few therapeutic options, especially when it comes to severe, chronic and rare diseases. They also treat dehydration caused by nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

Infusions administer medication, safely and efficiently, directly to the blood stream, either through the use of a Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) line, intraosseous (10), intravenous (IV), port-a-cath or any other device.

Over the years, our stable of 30+ products in therapeutic segments encompassed infusion therapy, parenteral nutrition, anti-infectives and plasma volume expanders, in the form of plastic ampoules, plastic bottles (EURO Head/Nipple Head), glass vials/bottles and non-PVC bags using state-of-the-art technologies including blow-fill-seal, emulsion, aqueous and form-fill-seal. Between 2006 and 2009, Claris had more than 50% market share in the IV Fluids business, in the regions and product SKUs where we were present.

A thriving Research & Development centric management philosophy meant that we strived to look at new solutions for old problems. Product innovations included the UniBag - a Closed Infusion System that avoided the possibility of nosocomial infections prevalent in hospitals, and ensured quality, safety, and convenience to doctors; and the SuperAmp - Sterile Water for Injection, used as a solvent for drug mixing, which had twist-off shatterproof advantage and advanced "Lure Lock" opening. We were also among the first manufacturers of infusion products in collapsible containers, a true Closed Infusion System. Our inventive approach was not limited to hero products: a strong customer relationship management ethic helped us build and sustain relationships with over 600 domestic partners including Clearing & Forwarding agents, distributors and stockists.

The infusions manufacturing plant, the Clarion II, was dedicated to blow-fill-seal technology products and was equipped to manufacture products in various volumes in the IV fluids segments. By 2005, we had laid the foundation for our second infusion manufacturing plant for bags as well as expansion of the existing lines. The Clarion IV housed highly sophisticated and advanced equipment, achieving higher manufacturing capacities, including a fully automatic bag manufacturing machine which was used to produce single, double and triple chamber bags. Other facilities included a state-of-the-art laboratory set-up equipped with facilities for chemical and instrumental analysis, capable of undertaking the most comprehensive tests, as well as separate teams for quality assurance (QA) and finished products' testing (QC). We were certified by the WHO-GMP and awarded the most stringent of regulatory approvals, including the ANVISA (Brasil). We also received the ISO 9001:2000 certification for quality management systems.

With the objective to have an increased focus on the injectables business, in 2013, we entered a joint venture (JV) with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Factory, Inc. (among Japan's biggest pharmaceutical companies) and Mitsui & Co. Ltd. (a global giant among diversified and comprehensive trading, investment and service enterprises), transferring 80% of the Infusion business at $193m (Rs1,313cr), while retaining the top managerial positions and operational control of the JV. The deal was at a record valuation of 3.7 times the turnover and signalled recognition of Claris' superior technological advancements.

By 2015, the Infusions arm of Claris had over 1,000 employees and a market across 70+ countries worldwide, including the regions of Asia, Africa, CIS, MEGNA (Middle East, Gulf & North Africa), Russia and Latin America, with a primary customer base that included government and private hospitals, aid agencies and nursing homes.

In 2017, we completed the sale of our 20% stake in Claris Otsuka, and exited the JV.

At heart, our journey was a reflection of the need for improving the speed and accuracy of finding and mass-producing novel drugs and treatment methods to respond to persistent large-scale and high-pressure demand. In an industry measured by market share statistics, we tethered our success to the responsibility that came through crafting and contributing to potentially life-changing solutions.

Founded by Krishna Handa in 2006, Dorizoe was a boutique, full-service, global Contract Research & Development Organisation that aimed to build excellence in research and technology, service and delivery. As part of its offerings Dorizoe provided Pharmaceutical Development, Technology Transfer and Project Management services to the global pharmaceutical community.

By 2019, Dorizoe's products and state-of-the-art R& D facility had earned the approval of not just clients across the USA and Europe but also stringent regulatory bodies. From its inception, what set Dorizoe apart was the philosophy of Quality by Design (QbD) approach and High Compliance Standards, which included applying and challenging possible technologies and techniques in order to deliver the optimal product profile and performance.

Backed by over 50 team members, Dorizoe worked closely with Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) suppliers and Contract Manufacturing organisations (CMO) to provide end-to-end product development and technology transfer solutions to pharmaceutical companies worldwide, delivering competitive value through every stage of the drug development cycle, from molecule to market.

Our high-quality services had capabilities to serve needs ranging from conventional injectables to specialised dosage forms including ophthalmic, topical, inhalation, and oral liquids. Our proven expertise in providing regulatory-compliant parenteral product development services for regulated markets, benefitted over a dozen clients across North America and Europe, through more than 50 products.

Bespoke, versatile and cost effective, Dorizoe's expert services spanned a niche market: our capabilities ranged from early stage API characterisation to formulation and optimisation, analytical development through to process development, feasibility and compatibility studies, scale-up, as well as technology transfer for commercial manufacturing, including support 505(b)(2) regulatory pathways. Combining the best of science and service, we partnered our clients in their growth journey through versatile, responsive engagement, leveraging our high-calibre expertise to offer our clients dependable performance and exceptional results.

In 2019, Claris took the strategic decision to completely exit the pharma business, which lead to the discontinuation of Dorizoe operations.