Patanjali Products: Disruptive Force in the Indian FMCG Market

Patanjali was formed in 1997 as a small pharmacy called ‘Divya Pharmacy’ in Haridwar , India, by Ramdev and his collaborator, ayurveda expert Balkrishna, to manufacture ayurvedic medicines. Balkrishna was involved in making the ayurvedic medicines whereas Ramdev focused on yoga. For about three years, the duo made the medicines and distributed them free of cost to patients.

Ramdev was born as Ramkrishna Yadav in Alipur, a village in the Mahendragarh district of Haryana state in India. He joined Arya Gurukul, Kanpur, where he studied Sanskrit and yoga. He held a postgraduate (Āchārya) degree with a specialization in Sanskrit grammar, yoga, the Vedas, and the Upanishads from a Gurukul in Haryana. He changed his name to Ramdev, abandoned the worldly way of life, and went to the Himalayas to practice self-discipline through meditation. He gained prominence after he started the Divya Yog Mandir Trust, Kankhal, near the holy place of Haridwar in north India in 1995 where patients suffering from various diseases were reportedly cured using Ayurvedic medicines and yogic practices. ....