The homemaker investor

The interesting investment journey of Bithi Patnaik is sure to inspire housewives to warm up to the world of investing. Born and brought up in Cuttack, Odisha, this lady is an ardent supporter of mutual funds and Value Research. To her, Dhirendra Kumar (DK) is nothing short of a demi-god. Market corrections have no meaning for her and she only adheres to what VR and DK say, the 60-year-old admits. Bithi is a graduate, is blessed with good families both on her parents and her in-laws sides. Her grandfather-in-law was a zamindar, and her father-in-law, a joint secretary. Finance or money was never discussed before women or children in her family. 'I got everything without having to ask for it but within limits. Every paisa was accounted for. There was no liberty with that. Mostly men and the elderly women of the family handled money matters. We had to justify our expenses. Lying didn't ever work,' Bithi says with an impish smile. Bithi vividly remembers their very first financial investment. 'After my elder son's birth in 1981, we invested small amounts in an FD and two RDs. We also bought two money-back policies from LIC. At that time, we didn't know anything about investments. We knew only about the savings account. Those policies were also purchased to help our friends, an LIC agent and a banker, to meet their targets. My husband knew nothing about investments, nor did I,' she admits. Back then Bithi and her husband went on putting away any surplus money they had only in FDs. Her husband till date is very conservative. He only wants to stash away money for emergency. Bithi first came across Value Research and Dhirendra Kumar in 2007. It was aro

This article was originally published on August 09, 2021, and last updated on August 15, 2022.