Indian share prices closed 1.59 percent lower Wednesday as investors sold down the market to lock-in recent record gains, dealers said.
They said the market was ready for a fall after hitting a new record high earlier in the week.
The Mumbai stock exchange's 30-share benchmark Sensex index fell 142.35 points to close below the 8,800 mark at 8,788.81 on volume of 35.49 billion rupees (772 million dollars).
The Sensex broke an intra-day record of 9,000 points Monday on sustained overseas fund buying. Foreign funds have pumped in 8.62 billion dollars into Indian equities since the start of the year.
"Profit booking is likely to be seen at these levels, though we expect select buying to come in next week," said a dealer with brokerage Jamnadas Morarjee.