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Welcome to Business Daily here on the BBC World Service. Namaste. I'm Devina Gupta in India's capital city, Delhi.

Now, 2025 marks 30 years since the very first mobile phone call in India. From that single call,

the country has grown into one of the world's largest mobile markets. Today, millions

use their phones not just to talk, but to stream videos, transfer money and manage almost every

part of daily life. So in this edition, we are talking to someone who has been at the heart of this digital

revolution, working with one of India's biggest telecom operators and helping millions of

people get connected.

Whatever you watch is coming through me.

Whatever you talk can also be enabled through me.

Rahul Wads is the chief regulatory officer at India's telecom giant Airtel and has been

shaping policies in this fiercely competitive sector.

Getting licenses in my younger days for areas which there were no coverage for was a big

thing.

Now I look back, it was such a momentous moment.

That's all coming up in this edition of Business Daily from the BBC.

Airtel is one of the most recognizable telecom brands in the world,

operating in 17 countries across Africa and Asia.

Hear a million heartbeat, feels from once in a while. in 17 countries across Africa and Asia.

The company was founded in 1995 by the Indian industrialist Sunil Bharti-Mittal and now connects nearly half a billion users by mobile, broadband internet and streaming services on their devices.

Behind every call and every click is a complex network of licenses, approvals and negotiations.

And that's where Rahul Wads comes in.

...