Shankar Sharma likens Indian stock market to Rajesh Khanna, China to Amitabh Bachchan. Here’s why

Indian stock market crashed on Monday, with benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty 50 plummeting over 1.5% each amid widespread selling pressure. The market's fall marks a significant correction of more than 9% from its record highs, driven by a persistent outflow of foreign institutional investors (FII).

This trend has been fueled by expectations of another stimulus package from China, prompting funds to shift from India to China, while FIIs also look to book profits ahead of the upcoming US elections.

Against this backdrop, ace investor Shankar Sharma drew a vivid analogy from Bollywood’s golden era, comparing the recent sluggishness of the Indian stock market to the once-unrivalled career of superstar Rajesh Khanna being challenged by a rising star.

In a post on the micro-blogging platform X (formerly Twitter), Sharma wrote on Indian stock market performance, drawing a parallel between the Indian market and Khanna’s golden period between 1970 and 1973, a time when the actor delivered an unprecedented 14 consecutive superhits.

“The problem with the Indian stock market is that for the past 3 years, it was like Rajesh Khanna between ‘70 & ‘73: back to back, 14 super hits. Uncontested. Then came a UP ka bhaiya, a classical 4 AM bet: & “Namak Haraam” suddenly made it a 2 horse race. That bhaiya is China,” Sharma wrote.

According to Sharma, just as Khanna’s dominance was challenged by a newcomer, the Indian stock market’s stellar run over the past three years is now facing stiff competition. Enter “UP ka bhaiya,” a metaphorical reference to China, which Sharma equates to the classical 4 AM bet — a high-risk, high-reward gamble.

Much like Amitabh Bachchan’s sudden rise to fame with the 1973 blockbuster “Namak Haraam”, China’s influence on global markets has turned what was once a one-horse race into a two-horse competition.

Growing Chinese Dominance

The comparatively lower valuations of China’s market, combined with stimulus measures aimed at bolstering Asia’s largest economy, have attracted investors, drawing significant foreign capital into Chinese markets. Sharma’s analogy suggests that India’s uncontested growth is now being tested by China’s resurgence and its ability to attract global capital, possibly diverting attention away from the Indian stock market.

The metaphor underscores the complexity of market dynamics, illustrating how external forces, much like new actors in Bollywood, can shift the narrative. While the Indian stock market enjoyed a meteoric rise, Sharma’s comment hints at a phase of introspection and recalibration as it faces new challenges on the global stage.

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