Choppy trade###

Indian shares fell 0.4 percent in choppy trade on Wednesday, weighed down by subdued Asia and the expiry of monthly derivatives contracts on Thursday, but Bharti Airtel bucked the trend on better-than-expected results.

Bharti, India's top mobile operator, rose nearly 1 percent to 858.10 rupees after it reported a 41.7 percent rise in quarterly profit on a surge in subscriber numbers.

At 11:34 a.m., the benchmark BSE 30-share index was down 0.39 percent, or 70.1 points, at 18,021.85, with 18 of its components falling. The index fell as much as 0.9 percent earlier, after having opened up 0.16 percent.

Reliance Industries, India's most valuable listed firm, fell 1.3 percent to 2,541.85 rupees and No. 2 lender ICICI Bank was down 1.4 percent at 1,203 rupees. The two stocks account for more than a quarter of the main index.