Rakesh Jhunjhunwala was one of India’s greatest stock investors. He was considered the “Indian Warren Buffett” or the “King of Dalal Street” who had the Midas touch. He died of a heart attack at the Bridge Kandy Hospital in Mumbai on August 14, 2022.
Wiki/Biography
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala was born on Tuesday, July 5, 1960 (now 62 years old; as of 2022) in Hyderabad, Telangana. When he was two years old, his family moved to Mumbai. Rakesh obtained his Bachelor of Commerce degree from Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics, Mumbai. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1985.
appearance
Hair color: gray and white
Eye color: Black
Family and caste
Rakesh was born in a middle-class Marwari family.
Parents and siblings
Rakesh’s father, Radheshyamji Jhunjhunwala, is an income tax officer. His mother, Urmila Jhunjhunwala, is a housewife. Rakesh’s elder brother, Rajesh, is a chartered accountant. He has two sisters, Sudha Gupta and Neena Sanganeria.
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and his father
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s mother Urmila Jhunjhunwala
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s younger brother Rajesh
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s sister Sudha
Relationships, Wife and Children
Rakesh married Rekha Junjunwala on Sunday, February 22, 1987. The couple had a difficult pregnancy. His wife gave birth to their daughter Nisha on June 30, 2004 after six rounds of IVF. His twin sons Aryam and Ayavi were born on March 2, 2009.
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and his wife Rekha
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and his daughter Nishtha
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and his family
address
Il Palazzo, Little Gibbs Road, Malabar Hill, Mumbai.
Profession
As an investor
Rakesh was a bright student and started dabbling in stocks at a very young age. In an interview, when asked who introduced him to the stock market, he said,
My father was also interested in stocks. When I was a kid, he and his friends would drink in the evening and discuss the stock market. I would listen to them and one day I asked him why these prices were fluctuating. He told me to check if there was any news about Gwalior in the newspapers and if there was, the stock prices in Gwalior would fluctuate the next day.”
Rare childhood photos of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala
Soon, Rakesh made up his mind to become a stockbroker. His father advised him to complete his formal education first so that he would have a backup plan in case he failed as a stockbroker. Rakesh completed his chartered accountancy course in 1985 and started working as a stock trader. Rakesh was strictly advised by his father not to approach any of his friends for investment. When the SENSEX index was hovering around 150 points, Mr. Jhunjhunwala entered the stock market with just Rs. 5,000. As of 2020, the SENSEX index has crossed 45,000 points.
He met his first client, Mr. Mendonsa, through his brother who was a chartered accountant at the time. Rakesh convinced him to invest Rs 1.5 lakh, promising him 18% returns. His second client gave him Rs 10 lakh. Rakesh’s first big profit was buying 5,000 shares of Tata Tea at Rs 43 per share and selling them at Rs 143 per share. His initial investments also included buying shares of Sesa Goa, Bata, Apollo Hospitals and Bharat Electronics. The market hunker (derived from the Japanese word hanchō, meaning group leader) made a profit of Rs 25 lakh in the first few years of trading.
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s multiple stocks
Mr. Jhunjhunwala’s multiple stocks include 8 crore shares of Titan Ltd. which he bought in 2002 at Rs 5 per share and by 2020, the share price increased to Rs 1500. Another major investment of his was the purchase of Lupin Ltd. shares which he bought at Rs 150 per share and soon the share price surged from Rs 150 to Rs 975. These investments made him the king of Dalal Street. Rakesh went through a tough time after the global recession in 2008. His shares fell by 30% but recovered by 2012.
Rakesh manages his private equity firm ‘Rare Enterprises’ which is jointly owned by him and his wife. The company is named after the couple, ‘Ra’ for Rakesh and ‘Re’ for Rekha. Mr. Jhunjhunwala considers DMart owner Radhakishan Damani as his mentor. During the Harshad Mehta period (1990-92), Rakesh and Damani pushed the bearish trend in the stock market and they made a lot of money by shorting stocks. In an interview, when he was asked about Harshad Mehta, also known as Bigg Bull, he said,
No, I made a lot of money by short selling. Harshad Mehta was my dream. I made the biggest fortune of my life by short selling in 1992. In fact, I will tell you a story. We started short selling at 4,200. Mr. Mayya, the CEO of Bombay Stock Exchange, would call me and say you are short selling, I will take your license away. He called me again at 3,500, again at 3,000 and then again at 2,200. I told him Mr. Mayya, would you be happy if you joined me instead of firing me every time?
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and his mentor Radhakishan Damani
As a film producer
Mr. Jhunjhunwala was formerly the Chairman of Hungama Digital Media Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. He co-produced films such as English Vinglish (2012) and Shamitabh (2015) with his mentor and friend Radhakishan Damani.
Alkasa Airlines
On July 7, 2022, the Air Operating Certificate (AOC) allowed Akasa Air, an Indian airline backed by billionaire and ace investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, to start commercial air transport operations.
We are pleased to announce that we have received our Airline Operating Certificate (AOC). This is a significant milestone that enables us to launch flights and commence commercial operations.
— Akasa Air (@AkasaAir) July 7, 2022
dispute
In 2020, Rakesh came under the microscope of the Securities and Exchange Board of India for alleged insider trading in the shares of his IT education and training company Aptech between February and September 2016, according to a tipster. The Securities and Exchange Board of India issued a show-cause notice to him, saying the board would freeze his bank accounts. The board also investigated his wife, mother-in-law and some other board members like Ramesh S Damani and Madhu Jayakumar.
Favorites
Car Collection
Rakesh owns a Mercedes Benz S-Class.
net worth
As of 2020, Mr. Jhunjhunwala’s net worth is worth approximately $3.1 billion. The list of his physical assets is given below.
- Mr. Rakesh purchased a 4,500 sq ft duplex in Malabar Hill, South Mumbai for Rs 25.25 crore.
- An 18,000 sq ft holiday home in Lonavala with seven bedrooms, a swimming pool, jacuzzi, gymnasium and discotheque.
die
He died of a sudden heart attack and breathed his last at the Brichikandi Hospital in Mumbai on August 14, 2022. According to the hospital authorities, he was in poor health and was undergoing treatment at the hospital for a few days.
Facts/Trivia
- In 2017, he reportedly made over Rs 875 crore in a single day due to the rise in Titan’s share price.
- As of 2020, the business tycoon is ranked 54th on the list of India’s richest people (Mukesh Ambani is first).
- Actor Kavin Dave plays a character based on Rakesh Jhunjhunwala in SonyLIV’s popular web series Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story.
- The market wizard coaches young traders to learn from their mistakes. He believes that the stock market is the real king. In an interview, he described the stock market like this:
Markets are like women—always majestic, mysterious, unpredictable, and erratic.”
- There is a blog called “Secret Diary of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala” which satirically describes his life. The blog is written by writer Aditya Magal, who also published a parody novel in 2014 called “How to Become a Billionaire by Selling Useless Stuff”.
- Mr. Jhunjhunwala, a supporter of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), told The Economic Times:
I hope Modi becomes prime minister again. I am a supporter of BJP and I will continue to be a supporter. India will not perish if a different government comes because India is a responsible democracy. But I hope, wish, expect that we will have a BJP government.”
- Rakesh Jhunjhunwala has made a huge contribution to philanthropy. He is a major supporter of the Agastya International Foundation in Bangalore. In an interview with The Economic Times, he said:
The ultimate donor is God and it is our duty to use this wealth for good social purposes. So my life’s goal and ambition is to use a good portion of the wealth that I earn for good social purposes. The only income that I have for sure is dividend income and I give one-third of the dividend income to charity and I hope to do the same in the future and over time I hope to donate at least Rs 500 crore.”
- Rakesh likes gambling, especially betting on horses. He has a lot of horses and likes to watch them race. He said,
I often go to Mahalaxmi Racecourse [in Mumbai] During the season. I just love watching these games.”
- Mr. Jhunjhunwala was a heavy smoker and also drank alcohol.
- His favorite pastimes include reading and watching food shows.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education