A painful addiction to wealth

While the opioid epidemic in the US is well-known, Hard Sell sheds light on the lesser-known role of Indian-origin entrepreneur John Kapoor in exacerbating this crisis

The Hard Sell: CRIME AND PUNISHMENT IN AN OPIOID STARTUP

Author: Evan Hughes 

Publisher: Pan Macmillan

Pages: 231

Price: Rs 750

The opioid epidemic in the US that led to over 645,000 deaths due to overdose of pain medication between 1999 and 2021 has featured extensively in the US media. Most stories have focused on the role of the Sackler family, which controlled Purdue Pharma, though a few journalists and writers went beyond just the Sackler family’s shenanigans. The Hard Sell by Evan Hughes is the story of John Kapoor, another entrepreneur who also aggressively pushed and made a fortune from a painkiller he