Breaking free from the ‘frog in a well’ mindset: Manish Chokhani’s advice to retail investors

Renowned market analyst Manish Chokhani, Director at Enam Holdings advised Indian investors to broaden their horizons and explore global investment opportunities, cautioning against being ‘frogs in a well’, who are over-reliant on the domestic markets.

“I do think if we intend to be the third largest country in the world, we cannot behave like frogs in the well, only keeping our market overheated and getting into go up. And if you can get your money out to invest globally, by all means, you should do it,” Chokhani said in an interaction with ETNow on being asked about his thoughts on investors thinking global.

He emphasized the importance of diversifying portfolios internationally, given the attractive valuations and innovation-driven growth available in global markets.


“Sometimes we just miss the wood for the trees, by being so narrowly focused on our own markets. So, investors have to be a lot more global in their thinking and their research,” he added.

Chokhani highlighted that India’s market remains overheated, with capital inflows frequently managed through interventions by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), preventing the rupee from appreciating. He noted that such policies restrict investors from taking advantage of international markets, where significant opportunities exist at more favorable valuations.

“It seems the same way that each time the rupee gets inflows, it is the RBI which comes in sterilizes and builds up reserves and prevents the rupee from going up. And on the way down, we see it always then follows the rest of the world and we tumble down and we put up interest rates,” he said.

Also read: Market correction offering long-term investors a golden opportunity: Manish Chokhani

Discussing global opportunities, he pointed out that several sectors in China, Europe, and the U.S. are currently undervalued, providing compelling investment prospects.

“Novo Nordisk which is leading the anti-obesity charge has fallen off and come to a 20s kind of multiple. In China, you had stocks which were all at sub-10 multiples and they are global leaders and what they have done in the last 10 years,” Chokhani cited.

Despite not being sort of a big votary of China as a political person, but as an investor you have to look and marvel at what they have created, including things like if they decided that they are going to be cut out of the semiconductor game or the AI game. You have already seen what DeepSeek and the others have done, he added.

Chokhani also acknowledged China’s ability to create global giants in various sectors, including technology, luxury goods, and consumer brands. He pointed to companies such as Shein, which has disrupted fast fashion, and JNBY Fashion, which has grown into a significant player in the industry.

He further compared valuations in the electric vehicle (EV) and healthcare industries, stating that companies like Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW are trading at attractive multiples while continuing to push innovation in EVs. In contrast, he observed that Indian investors have been overly enthusiastic about Tata Motors without considering global valuations.

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“Same way, global healthcare stocks trade at 10-12 multiples, because there is a patent cliff coming in 2029 and the world is moving to biotechnology. And here we are paying for generics and now getting scared that what if Trump puts the 25% tariff, what happens to our pharma stocks and what happens to our CDMO stocks,” he said while pointing out a similar comparison in the healthcare sector.

He emphasized that Indian investors must adopt a broader perspective, recognizing worldwide investment trends and opportunities rather than being confined to local markets.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)