From Gully Cricket To Global Equities: Remembering The Market Maverick Siddhartha Bhaiya

Sid was unique. He was a great fund manager, for which he was well known. An outspoken guy, who likely lived life on his own terms. But he was an even better human being, a trait which not many would know. I take the liberty of calling him a friend, for he called me one. On calls. In interviews. In chance meetings. All these interactions that we have had, on so many occasions, on air and off air, make me understand the person that he likely was.

He rose from humble beginnings. But as he went from a boy who played gully cricket in far distant suburbs beyond the Mumbai Municipal limits to owning a fancy office and swanky cars, one could see that his intellect was doing something for him (and his investors) that dreams are made of. His bets on Chinese equities when no one liked them, his big bet on gold which not many were outspoken about, or his call of booking profits in Indian smallcaps at their peak, are all things that show his foresight in the midst of investing noise. He confessed openly about how difficult some of these calls were, for they were against the grain of common thought. But he stood by them, and they paid off in the end.

He lived and breathed stocks. His mantra was creating wealth for investors via equity investing, and boy, did he succeed at that! One can argue that he left a lot of well-known fund managers behind on the reputation table. But the true vindication of his efforts is not the intelligence of the conversations that he had in public, but the returns that his funds generated for his investors, which are there for everyone to see.

I won't get into details of how much he returned to his investors, for those figures are in the open. But yes, they do stand testimony to the fact that in a short span of time, he could lay claim to being one of the more successful money managers in India. And I will say that he truly felt for other investors, who he thought were making a mistake by investing in pockets of extreme valuation bubbles - which showed that he was a shark who wanted gains, but not at the cost to others.

I am privy to some of the things that he has done for friends who are common. It is not always that every single person who you know that knew him, speaks highly of him. Sid did remarkable things for people who were not his blood. And life repaid him in kind for the same. He was blessed with a family which he spoke fondly about, and riches in life which he was proud of. I remember him showing his new set of wheels with a beaming smile, and the fondness with which he spoke about his new office, which he said his colleagues truly deserved. He achieved success, but sadly rode into the sunset too soon.

My heart goes out to his parents, his wife, two precious daughters and the Aequitas family. These are tough times for them, and I hope that the Almighty give them the strength to move past this. It is impossible to replace him, but may his wisdom and his blessings stay with his family and his firm forever.

Rest in peace Sid - you will be missed sorely!