In a nation where the average salary is around $4,200 a year, the all-electric carmaker is launching a $70,000 vehicle. The question is why.

In India, the standard rear-wheel-drive (RWD) Model Y starts at ₹ 61.07 lakh (on-road) and offers a range of 500 km, while the long-range variant, priced at ₹ 67.9 lakh, extends that to 622 km. Both come with a 15.4-inch touchscreen but differ in battery size — 60 kWh for the standard and 73 kWh for the long-range.

Tesla entered India's market for the first time on Monday, making its Model Y SUV available and opening its first showroom in the nation.