Evolving with market: Kalpraj Dharamshi explains how investors must grow over time

Kalpraj Dharamshi, in a conversation with ETNow, shared candid insights on what it means to evolve as an investor over decades of market cycles. Reflecting on his journey that began in the mid-to-late 1980s, Dharamshi recounted key phases in the Indian markets and how they shaped his investment thinking.

Speaking about his early years, he said, “So, since my investing journey began in late 80s… was largely consisting of a time period when stocks were available quite cheap. I bought a lot of stocks at 10%, 12% dividend yield.”

He recalled a specific instance where “Ramesh Damani… identified McDowell, which is now United Spirits, at 200 crores market cap”, highlighting how opportunities were abundant at low valuations.

However, he acknowledged the challenge of staying relevant in changing market environments. “Now, as I said, I had to evolve from being seeing those PEs to now where we are at, where analysts come to me and at 40-50 PEs say they are cheap.”

He admitted that adapting to these valuation shifts is not easy: “So, yes, it is a journey, but it is tough. You have to fight your basic instincts, your gut to come up with fairer solutions.”

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Dharamshi emphasized that his original investing style was value-driven: “My investing journey began when everything was absolutely cheap. So, I became a value investor. Now, the straight equation is cheap is equal to value investor.”

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