Known as the investor with a Midas Touch and India's very own Warren Buffet, the Forbes' Rich List ranked Rakesh Jhunjhunwala the 36th richest man in the country with a net worth of $5.8 billion.
By 2020, Jhunjhunwala had decided to give away 25 percent of his wealth to charity. He was an active supporter of St Jude India, which runs shelters for children undergoing treatment for cancer, the Agastya International Foundation, and Arpan, an entity that helps create awareness among children on sexual exploitation.
A chartered accountant by profession, Jhunjhunwala was attracted to the stock market right from his college years and later, unsurprisingly, went on to become a Dalal Street icon who inspired a generation of investors.
The ace investor, who also ran the stock trading firm RARE Enterprises, showed how an ordinary person could make a fortune with disciplined and informed investing.
He started his investment journey in the equity markets with just Rs 5,000 in 1985. On the day he died, Jhunjhunwala's net worth was estimated at $5.5 billion, roughly Rs 43,800 crore, making him the 36th richest person in India, according to Forbes data.
Born on July 5, 1960, in a Rajasthani family, Jhunjhunwala grew up in Bombay, where his father worked as a Commissioner of Income Tax. He graduated from Sydenham College and thereafter enrolled at the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.
He earned his first big profit in 1986 when he bought 5,000 shares of Tata Tea at Rs 43 and the stock rose to Rs 143 within three months. In three years, he earned Rs 20-25 lakh.
His privately-owned stock trading firm Rare Enterprises derived its name from the first two letters of his name and that of his wife Rekha, who is also a stock market investor.
