The narrative has moved beyond the glitz of unicorn status to the grit of the balance sheet. In 2025, India’s IPO market quietly crossed a symbolic milestone of more than Rs 1.7 lakh crore raised in a single year, surpassing even the blockbuster primary issues of 2024. The narrative has moved beyond the glitz of unicorn status to the grit of the balance sheet. While the successful listings of Lenskart, Meesho, PhysicsWallah, and Pine Labs are being cheered for their listing g

A strong national balance sheet ultimately strengthens household balance sheets. On budget mornings, millions of middle-class families across India do the same mental math: Will income tax fall? Will daily life become cheaper? Can we save more this year? The Union Budget is often reduced to these immediate questions. But if we step back and read Budget 2026 the way a chartered accountant reads a balance sheet, a deeper story emerges—one about the country’s financial strength,

Over the last three weeks, we’ve tried to take the noise out of the AI conversation. Week 1: AI isn’t a cure. It’s a diagnostic. Week 2: AI breaks first where work is unclear. Week 3: AI only creates leverage when the right conditions exist. Now comes the real question: How do you design for AI without turning your business into a lab? Here’s a simpler way to think about it. Stop thinking of AI as a tool. Think of it as a new hire. When you hire a smart person, you don’t thro

Mahashivratri is associated with discipline, stillness, and control over impulses. Most people interpret fasting as a food ritual. But what if you tried a different kind of fast this year - one that improves your finances and your health? I call it as “Wants Fast” for 30 days. The Simple Rule The idea is simple. For one full month, you do not spend money on wants, only needs. Not as punishment, but as a reset - because in personal finance, the biggest damage rarely comes from

Purvodaya aims to strengthen tourism potential and enhance connectivity in East and Northeast India. The Government of India has recently launched the Purvodaya Scheme   to promote economic and tourism development in the eastern and northeastern regions of the country. The scheme aims to strengthen tourism potential and enhance connectivity under the East Coast Industrial Corridor, with Durgapur emerging as a key connecting node. The initiative focuses on five major states—Bi

There is a particular intensity that defines the new wave of young entrepreneurs. They move fast, earn fast, and scale fast — and often believe that momentum itself is the marker of success. Money becomes more than income. It becomes reassurance. Proof. Power. A scoreboard. Recently, I met a founder in his early thirties who is doing exceptionally well financially. His ambition was undeniable. He spoke about growth the way athletes speak about winning — with hunger, focus, an

AI generated image Mumbai: The Maharashtra government’s approval of a comprehensive land acquisition and allotment policy for the proposed “Mumbai 3.0” or “Third Mumbai” marks a decisive step toward expanding the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) eastward into the Atal Setu (Mumbai Trans Harbour Link) influence zone. Envisaged as a large-scale urban–industrial hub, the project is expected to reshape land economics, infrastructure planning and real estate investment patterns ac

Bengaluru recently witnessed an unusual but telling medical intervention. Doctors at National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (Nimhans) helped a 29-year-old young man, identified as ‘Mr. D,’ break free from what was diagnosed as stock trading addiction. According to the case report, the individual moved from modest investing to aggressive intraday and Futures and Options (F&O) trading, chasing rapid gains until financial stress, anxiety, and behavioural issues t

The Union Budget shuns pre-election excess in favour of a slower, sturdier march towards fiscal credibility. Among other things, the Union Budget for 2026–27 announced on February 1 was notable for its restraint. With key assembly elections looming in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Assam, one would have thought that the Central government would have yielded to the familiar temptations of fiscal largesse. Instead, the budget reads like an exercise in self-denial. While po

Long-term financial security comes from how households plan, spend, save, and invest year after year. For most middle-class families, the Union Budget is more than just a policy document. It is a moment of hope — hope for lower taxes, higher deductions, or some relief that makes monthly finances a little easier. Budget 2026, however, has left many with a familiar feeling. There is no major income tax relief, and for many salaried households, the immediate impact is limited. W

Multipliers don’t create direction. They amplify what already exists Over the last two weeks, we’ve done something most AI conversations avoid. We’ve slowed down. First we acknowledged the truth founders don’t usually say aloud: AI isn’t a cure. It’s a diagnostic. In Week 2, Rashmi took us inside real operations and showed where AI breaks first: SOP gaps, unclear inputs, broken handoffs. This week, I want to address the question that quietly follows both pieces: If AI is not

The Union Budget places culture and creativity at the centre of the country’s next growth story. India is attempting something unusual for an emerging economy by treating imagination as infrastructure. In the Union Budget for 2026–27, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman put a conspicuous emphasis on what is now fashionably called the ‘Orange Economy’ - a grab-bag of industries built on creativity, intellectual property and digital distribution. The ambition is explicit. By 20

When we talk about personal finance and investing, most conversations revolve around returns. How much did an investment make last year? Which asset is performing best right now? But seasoned investors know that wealth creation is not just about chasing returns. It is equally about understanding risks, especially the ones that quietly derail long-term financial goals. Whenever you invest in any product or asset class, there are three important risks you must analyse before co

RBI policy stability boosts real estate sentiment Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) decision to keep the repo rate unchanged at 5.25% has been widely welcomed by stakeholders across the real estate sector, who view the move as a stabilising factor at a time when India’s growth outlook has strengthened following the Union Budget’s emphasis on infrastructure spending and improving external trade prospects. Industry leaders believe that policy continuity will help sustai

In every market today, there are businesses that compete on price, and then there are businesses that command value. The difference is rarely the product alone. More often, it is perception. Luxury brands have understood this for decades, yet many founders continue to ignore the very principles that make premium positioning possible. Luxury is not a logo. It is not packaging. It is not even the price tag. Luxury is engineered perception. The world’s most iconic luxury brands

While top leaders of both countries cheer, the reality on the ground is very different Mumbai : Top leaders in the US and India hailed the latest trade deal between the two leading democracies as at least 32 farmers ended their life in Maharashtra in January, officials said.   Farmers' leaders like All India Kisan Sabha President Dr. Ashok Dhawale and Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti Chairman Kishore Tiwari promptly slammed the NDA Government of 'vendetta' and 'victimising' the In

India’s residential housing market continues to outperform most global peers, demonstrating resilience amid easing interest rates and an uneven global recovery, according to Knight Frank’s Global House Price Index Q3 2025 and India Real Estate: Office and Residential Market – H2 2025 reports. Globally, annual house price growth strengthened modestly to 2.4 per cent in the third quarter of 2025 as major central banks pivoted towards monetary easing. Against this backdrop, Indi

Sharp fall in rates revives sentiment in a market battered by unprecedented surge Kolhapur: After reeling under an extraordinary surge in global bullion prices, India’s gold and silver jewellery industry has begun to show early signs of relief, as a sharp correction in prices over the past two days has lifted sentiment in the domestic bullion market. The earlier rally had pushed the sector into what traders described as a severe economic crisis, wiping out business worth seve

The Union Budget for 2026–27 signals a shift from funding science as a sector to building it as an integrated engine of economic strength, strategic autonomy and human capital. The Union Budget 2026–27 marks an important moment for Indian science and technology policy. For perhaps the first time in recent years, science, technology, education, start-ups, and national missions are not presented as isolated sectors, but as parts of a single national capability framework. The Fi

The budget places greater emphasis on long-term growth, structural reforms, and financial discipline rather than short-term relief. The Union Budget 2026 has been presented at a time when the economy is showing steady growth yet continues to face persistent challenges such as inflationary pressures, unemployment concerns, and uncertainty in the global economic environment. Against this backdrop, the budget places greater emphasis on long-term growth, structural reforms, and f