Was this a Gen Z election? It is the question political pundits have been throwing around since the eye-popping results from West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. While few pollsters had the stomach to predict a BJP win in Bengal, no one anticipated the ferocity of the victory. In Tamil Nadu, younger voters decided the revolving door of incumbents was no longer serving their needs and chose a 'startup' instead — a political party helmed by Superstar Vijay, founded only two years ago.
Are winds of change blowing in the markets too? The Midcap 150 hit a record high this week even as the Nifty 50 continued to underperform. Experts I spoke to throughout the week put it down to a simple formula: India wants to buy, FIIs want to sell — and they will offload what they own, namely large-cap giants. Just how hungry India is to buy became evident on Wednesday afternoon, when an Axios report claimed a 'one-pager' was ready to kick off talks between the US and Iran. The speed with which all asset classes - from crude prices to the rupee to equities — reacted laid bare the pent-up demand.
Can Faith Outlast The Crisis?
Markets do not hand out opportunity freely. They ration it, and only during moments of genuine distress. That is the central argument of Pankaj Murarka, founder of Renaissance Investment Managers, made on Editor's Cut this week, and it is one worth sitting with. His thesis: Indian markets have historically yielded their greatest returns not in periods of calm, but in the crucible of macroeconomic crisis. The windows are narrow, they are uncomfortable, and most investors talk themselves out of acting when the moment arrives.
Murarka believes we are inside one such window right now. The macro headwinds are real — a choked Strait of Hormuz, volatile crude, a rupee under pressure. But he sees the Nifty reclaiming all-time highs before the year is out. The logic is straightforward, even if the conviction required to act on it is anything but: when the fear is loudest, the upside is largest.
The question, then, is not whether the opportunity exists. It is whether your faith can outlast the uncertainty — and whether you will still be invested when the tide turns.
On The Disruptors This Week
How does a filmmaker and a psychologist build one of the fastest-growing dosa joints in the country with no background in hospitality? This week on The Disruptors, I dive into Benne - the viral, celebrity-frequented dosa cafe; that has built its reputation on buttery dosas and legendary queues. The couple has opened four cafes in two years and, by some estimates, the brand is valued at Rs 350 crore. And this That is in a city with no shortage of cafes or dosas. Benne's success is a masterclass in the right mix of marketing and authenticity.
Watch the episode here:
Final Musings
US President Donald Trump described the exchange of fire this week between US and Iranian ships in the Strait of Hormuz as a 'love tap' — defined as a gentle nudge delivered playfully, rather than with intent to cause harm. The deliberate effort to downplay the latest skirmish gives hope that a resolution could come sooner rather than later.
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