Vijay Kedia — The investor who reads Gita and is happy being a YouTuber

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For a man who started on his investment journey without financial education, without experience and without capital during his teenage and made in excess of Rs 400 crore in about 30 years, Vijay Kedia is surprisingly modest.

“Having our own home is the biggest financial freedom,” says Kedia, who once lived a cramped life with several of his family members sharing a room in Kolkata.

Long-term view

Rootedness is a quality that has helped Kedia to grow.

Once he made his first capital of about Rs 35,000 over a period of 10 years through daily trading, this commerce graduate from a Kolkata college switched to long term investing.

This helped him accumulate wealth over time. ACC, Cera Sanitaryware, Atul, Aegis Logistics delivered him multibagger returns in the past. At last count, his total investment in equities stood at over Rs 410 crore.

1%+ in 15

Kedia today holds more than a 1% stake in over 15 listed companies.

Getting out of daily trading also gave him mental peace. He used to think the market was a place for the wolves, which he was not.

Sharing his recent picks, Kedia said that Neuland Laboratories, Vaibhav Global, Sudarshan Chemicals and Tejas Networks have delivered spectacular returns amid the ongoing uncertainty over the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fundamentalist

Zeroing on good companies with strong fundamentals is the key to success. “I don’t run after each and every stock. I keep an eagle eye and wait for opportunities,” Kedia said.

Commenting on the market condition, he says, “The benchmark equity indices BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty will move sideways. However, broader market will continue to throw opportunities to investors.”

Real estate

Real estate players and companies having their own research and development (R&D) operations and exports look attractive to Kedia.

People have learnt to live with the infection and pandemic, he thinks.

The man who learnt and earned it the hard way thinks financial freedom comes when one is able to run one’s home from the stock market and not worry about day-to-day expenses. “When that is secured, you can achieve the first level of financial freedom. It is a long-term process to achieve financial freedom through investing,” he says.

Social media

Had he failed in investing, articulate Kedia would not have found it difficult to make money from social media. He has over 33,000 followers on YouTube and 4.26 lakh on Twitter, where people flock for investment tips. He even sings and performs to his audience on special occasions.

But face to face, Kedia appears as a happy, if not contented, man. “Har fikr ko dhuyein mein udaata chala gaya, main zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya,” he would say quoting his favourite song of Mohammad Rafi.

Relaxed enjoyment

The first American to win the Nobel prize in economics, Paul Samuelson used to say, “Investing should be more like watching paint dry or watching grass grow. If you want excitement, take $800 and go to Las Vegas.”

Kedia embodies that edit and nourishes a quiet and relaxed sense of enjoyment watching his wealth grow. It is the joy of slow creation with a small measure of detachment – something close to what the Bhagwat Gita, his favourite book, taught him.