Rakesh Jhunjhunwala : Interview in Economictimes, India

In 1985, when Big Bull Rakesh Jhunjhunwala entered the market with Rs 5,000 as his initial capital, his dream was to earn about Rs 1 lakh a month. Now after journeying through a little over a quarter a century, even the man himself doesn't remember when he had crossed that dream to enter into the current realty of probably earning much more than a lakh of rupees every hour.

So when we meet the last Big Bull of his generation at his 15th floor office at Nariman Bhavan in Mumbai's central business district of Nariman Point, naturally a good part of the conversation is about his wealth along with others like the ethics, tricks and the secrets of the trade.

Although various estimates put his total wealth above $1 billion, 51-year-old Jhunjhunwala wouldn't reveal a specific number. Instead his answer is a rather diplomatic and prosaic; "I have far less wealth than people think but I have much more than I need". But he is candid enough to add that the first time he was listed among the country's richest, his father, a tax man whom the junior Jhunjhunwala idolizes, was happy about his son's achievements. "He asked me to use more of it for charity," he says adding that that is something he has been trying to do seriously.

Whatever be his net worth, the fact remains he is the most watched man on Dalal Street. People want to know what he is buying, what he thinks of the market trends. At times there is an 'irrational exuberance' in a counter just because it is rumoured that Jhunjhunwala is interested in the company and its business.

It was Sesa Goa and Tata Power that he started off with in the mid-1980s, Jhunjhunwala reminisces, sitting across the corner office, which surprisingly doesn't have any TV. What it has, however, is a lovely view of the Arabian Sea.

That's where Jhunjhunwala, a trained chartered accountant, tasted the smell of money. Crisil, Titan, Praj Industries are some other stocks in which he has made loads of money. So is there a common thread to his stock selection? It's his knack to pick stocks with strong under-valuations and long-term prospects. At present, "retail and banking are the sectors to watch out for," he revealed. Rather strange for a man who is known not to reveal any of his bets.

Although considered to be a Big Bull on the Street, unlike some of the discredited players in the past who also carried the same title, Jhunjhunwala doesn't want to control the market. To a pointed question that how he is different from them, he said; "I don't want to control the opportunity. Rather I grab the opportunity". "Greed and immaturity are the two things to avoida¦ I would never manipulate a stock. I know the road to Arthur Road Jail and I would not like to take that path," was his admission about his approach to the market. And since opportunities don't come regularly, by his own admission, wealth has come to him in spurts. "It doesn't come when you deserve it," he says taking a deep puff on a cigarette.