NEW YORK: Shares of Indian companies trading on American bourses took a severe beating in 2011 as their overall market capitalization tumbled nearly $120 billion amid gloomy global market conditions. Last year, the 15 Indian entities listed on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq saw their cumulative market valuation plummet by a staggering $119.46 billion. Out of the 15 entities, only three -- internet majors Sify and Rediff.com and outsourcing firm EXLService Holdings -- witnessed an increase in market capitalization last year. The remaining entities, including ICICI Bank and Tata Motors, saw a significant decline in their market valuation. "Indian ADRs on an average gave a negative return of 20 per cent to investors in the year 2011. The counters performed poorly due to the crash in the Indian equity market," CNI Research Head Kishor Ostwal said. American Depository Receipts (ADRs) are bought and sold on American markets just like stocks and are issued by a bank or brokerage firm. Sify saw its market capitalisation rise by $105 million to a total of $214 million, while that of Rediff.com grew by $156 million to $445 million. EXLService Holdings managed to end with a gain of $26 million in market capitalization to nearly $697 million. Although the U.S. market saw a marginal gain of around 5 percent during the year, Indian ADRs' performance was directly related to the domestic equity market, Ostwal noted. In 2011, the U.S. benchmark index Dow Jones Industrial Average ( DJIA) gained about 5.57 percent to close at 12,217.56 points, whereas India's key 30-share Sensex index lost 24.6 percent to 15,454.92 points. State-run telecom firm MTNL, which has been facing tough competition from rivals, was the worst performer among the ADRs in terms of the erosion in value on a percentage basis, while auto-maker Tata Motors was the worst-hit in absolute terms.