BENGALURU, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Indian shares fell on Monday, weighed down by losses in pharmaceutical stocks, although shares of Pfizer Inc's Indian arm (PFIZ.NS) jumped on positive data for the parent firm's experimental pill against COVID-19.

The blue chip NSE Nifty 50 index (.NSEI) fell 0.30% to 17,863.05 and the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex (.BSESN) fell 0.29% to 59,895.40 by 0401 GMT.

Markets had gained in Thursday's special one-hour trading session and were shut on Friday for the festive season of Diwali.

On Monday, shares of Pfizer Ltd gained as much as 8.3% after its parent said on Friday that its experimental COVID-19 antiviral pill cut by 89% the chance of hospitalization or death for adults at risk of severe disease. read more

The Nifty Pharma Index (.NIPHARM) lost 1.97%, weighed down by a 7.9% fall in active pharmaceutical ingredient maker Divi's Laboratories (DIVI.NS) , despite the company posting strong September-quarter results on Saturday.

Divi's makes the API for generic versions of Pfizer rival Merck's (MRK.N) COVID-19 antiviral pill molnupiravir.

Broader Asian markets were mixed as investors looked ahead to a reading on U.S. inflation later in the week.

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