I’m Rakesh Jhunjhunwala…: Big Bull on being called India’s Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett is currently among the 10 richest people in the world and his networth is over $100 billion. In comparison to that, Jhunjhunwala, who breathed his last on 14 August, created a wealth of around $5.8 billion. 

“It’s not a fitting comparison (with Warren Buffett),” he had once told news agency Reuters in an interview in 2012. “In terms of wealth and success and maturity, he’s far, far ahead.”

“I’m Rakesh Jhunjhunwala. I’ve lived the world on my own terms. I do what I enjoy. I enjoy what I do,” he had told the news agency. 

The billionaire investor breathed his last on 14 August. He was 62.

The veteran stock market investor was a self-made trader, and invested in several established businesses and startups, including the country’s newest airline Akasa Air. Known for his selection of stocks for long-term investing, Jhunjhunwala was among the most influential market voices in India.

Jhunjhunwala, known as “Big Bull” in India, was instrumental in taking some privately held companies public, including Star Health and Allied Insurance Co. Ltd. and gaming firm Nazara Technologies Ltd. His latest venture was Akasa, which started operations earlier this month.

Mourning his death, PM Modi said on Sunday that the investor was “indomitable” and left behind “an indelible contribution to the financial world.”

Jhunjhunwala developed a childhood fascination for stocks by watching his father, a retired tax commissioner, juggle market investments, he said in the interview. After graduating with honors from Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics in Mumbai, he borrowed ₹5,00 from a brother-in-law in 1985 and began buying shares at age 25.

A Mumbai resident, Jhunjhunwala also invested through his firm Rare Enterprises Pvt. He is survived by his wife, Rekha Jhunjhunwala, and three children. 

(With inputs from agencies)

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