A series of indolyldihydropyridines has been designed, synthesized, and evaluated in order to show the effect of the indole moiety and the role of the methyl groups at the 2 and 6 positions of the dihydropyridine ring in the calcium channel blocking activity. The results seem to show that these groups constitute a critical structural requirement for the pharmacological action of these compounds. (C) 1997 Academic Press.