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It was 1985. There were around 150 points on the Sensex. A young guy in his mid-twenties invested Rs 5,000 in the stock market.
The year is 2022. Sensex has surpassed 59,000 points. Additionally, that man's name is followed by a net worth of more than Rs 46,000 crore. He is a stock market legend known as India's Big Bull across the whole globe.
One of India's wealthiest stock market investors, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, passed away on Sunday in Mumbai at the age of 62 after suffering a heart attack. The expert investor had uncontrolled diabetes and renal issues, according to a doctor at Breach Candy Hospital, where he was brought dead at 6:45 am.
His passing shocked the investment world, and sadness was expressed in great quantities.
While his first significant gain came from Tata Tea in 1986, it has been predicted that his largest investment to date would be Titan, which was worth over Rs 7,000 crore. Aurobindo Pharma, Ion Exchange, Lupin, Geojit Financial Services, VIP Industries, Rallis India, Jubilant Life Sciences, and other companies were among those he invested in throughout the years in addition to these. The recession of 2008 caused a decline in his portfolio, but by 2012 he had made up the losses. Jhunjhunwala was one of the wealthiest persons in the nation because to his business endeavours and portfolio.
The most recent venture for Jhunjhunwala as an investor and promoter was Akasa Air, which was only introduced last week. He described it as a "frugal airline," not a low-cost carrier. Even though Jhunjhunwala said he was prepared for failure soon after the debut, he was certain that aviation stocks will rise soon. The present global recession has many people wary of the Indian markets, but Jhunjhunwala is certain that Sensex and Nifty will keep rising despite the difficulties. In a recent interview with CNBC-TV18, he said, "I anticipate the (local) stock markets will increase regardless of global happenings." Additionally, he said that Dalal Street would expand at a little slower rate.
PSU banks were Jhunjhunwala's wager, he said. I'm really positive about PSU Bank, PSU Bank, and PSU Banks, he had previously said. Jhunjhunwala has stated his reasoning for the same, stating that he believes credit would expand, with the result being an increase in the pricing power of banks. He said, "PSU banks have considerable capacity to collect deposits."
Behind those startling figures was a brain that was equally attuned to business operations and human behaviour. Combining his expertise as a certified accountant with his prophetic foresight, he chose businesses and the leaders who managed them above seasonal trends and tidbits of food.
Consider his most recent triumph. In December of last year, when start-ups were all the rage, Metro Brands made its public debut. With the appropriate combination of items, Jhunjhunwala saw the company's potential and ultimately acquired 14.4% of its shares via his wife and business partner, Rekha. His fortune increased by 221 crore on Friday alone as the company's shares increased by 7% in a single day.
He enjoyed doing this type of move, and that is what made him famous. His specialty was avoiding low-hanging fruit or investments that had captured the attention of the uninformed in favour of stocks of businesses with actual goods and services to introduce to the market. The majority of his top stock choices, including Titan, Tata Motors, Fortis Healthcare, Canara Bank, and NCC Ltd., are unified by this theme. Just 10 equities accounted for more than 80% of the value of his portfolio because once he was persuaded of a company's long-term potential, he fully committed to it.
The 62-year-old Jhunjhunwala liked the markets above all else and delighted in playing a significant role in them. He had just established himself as the hub around which the markets spun, with millions of investors willing to follow his lead. It would have thrilled the guy who loved the spotlight and was never afraid to show his vulnerability.
His optimistic view earned him the nickname "Big Bull" during the course of a 37-year investing career that followed, and his astute decisions earned him the appellation "India's Warren Buffett" among stock market experts. "I will personally miss Rakesh Jhunjhunwala. He was practical and to the point at all times." According to Sumit Agrawal, founder of Regstreet Law Advisors, who has counselled Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and Rare Enterprises on different problems, "He genuinely understood how to celebrate events as well as how to graciously accept loss."
"Never did he hold back on his comments or tone. It's sad to see him go. When he and I were travelling to Sebi for a meeting, I clearly recall an incident. It had to do with a situation where Sebi's perspective on certain transactions differed from his. He had been discussing the advantages and disadvantages of various possibilities with me for a while when all of a sudden he mentioned that the regulators are like your spouse. You should always give them the benefit of the doubt, whether they are correct or incorrect, to maintain good relations. Perspectives are everything in life. We should resolve this and move forward."
The successful investor who entered the stock market in 1985 with only 5,000 dollars in his bank account also dabbled in the entertainment business, becoming a producer of the 2012 Hindi film "English Vinglish" and two more films, "Shamitabh" and "Ki & Ka" after that.
You need to be open-minded and avoid using a formula to make investments in order to succeed. Despite being one of the wealthiest individuals in India, he was extremely personable and transparent about his investing ideas, encouraging others to do the same. a person who is really friendly. A socialist administration led by V P Singh was in power in 1989, and there was a lot of speculation that the government would choose a socialist budget and enact additional taxes. No doubt, it wasn't intended to be good for the markets.
Jhunjhunwala, though, was optimistic. Singh, a "thakur," in his view, understood business and would never approve a budget that was unwelcoming to the business sector.
He had made sizable investments ahead of schedule, and in the next days, several of them experienced a value increase of double!
Finally, if nothing more, his popularity may be determined by the fact that Jhunjhunwala-related hashtags were among the most popular ones on Twitter on August 14. The first time an Indian private stock market investor may have broken the Internet.
The prime minister, home minister, finance minister, and other prominent political figures, as well as the who's who of India Inc., tweeted about the passing of the man known by many names—Rocky, RJ, or even bhaiya (older brother) for some—and sent their condolences.
According to Forbes, Jhunjhunwala was the 36th wealthiest person in India with a net worth of almost $5.8 billion.