India, Sept. 11 -- Apple's September events are always about drama and theatrics. The curtains rise in Cupertino, its headquarters, a new product lights up the stage, and millions of potential customers across the world take notice. But there are differences this time with the iPhone 17 series, at least vis-a-vis India. When these new phones are available on the Indian shelves on September 19, the narrative will be about the hardware. It will also be about the price, tariff, strategy, and whether Apple can coax consumers to opt for the next upgrade cycle when competition in the premium smartphone segment is intense.

Apple's global pricing strategy has invariably sparked a debate in India, where import duties and the Goods and Services Ta...