As Indra Nooyi exits PepsiCo, she leaves behind a chequered India record

Nooyi leaves a healthy business in the US but the Indian subsidiary's performance during her stewardship has been less impressive

In 1997, Priya Mohan Sinha, who headed PepsiCo India’s business, discovered an attractive opportunity. The Timblo family, which bottled Coke in Goa, was willing to jump ship owing to serious differences with the Atlanta-based beverage giant. With the cola wars at its peak, getting Timblo on board would be a big victory for PepsiCo, especially after Coke outbid it to acquire Ramesh Chauhan’s soft drinks business, grabbing 75 per cent of the country’s carbonated drinks market. Speed was the essence and Sinha discussed the potential opportunity on the phone with Indra Nooyi, then head of strategy, in New York. Within