Father's dream for daughter's marriage: How to build Rs 1 crore corpus

As more NRIs look toward India for long-term wealth creation, mutual funds have become a preferred route for building financial goals back home.

In a recent query on ET Now’s The Money Show, NRI investor Rajesh Sahni said he aims to accumulate Rs 1 crore for his daughter’s marriage, with the remaining corpus needed at a later stage.

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Sahni, who is currently based in Nigeria and originally from Kanpur, has been consistently investing in India. He runs a monthly SIP of Rs 90,000 across multiple schemes, including HDFC Flexicap, HDFC Mid Cap, HDFC Multi Cap, Bandhan Small Cap, Kotak Contra, and two Motilal Oswal Mutual Fund schemes.

He now wishes to add another Rs 30,000 per month and seeks clarity on whether he should start a new fund or allocate the amount across existing ones. His goal is to accumulate at least Rs 1 crore for his daughter’s marriage while continuing long-term investment — especially in HDFC Midcap — for his children aged 17 and 14, respectively.

Advisor’s view: Appreciation for investing in India despite residing overseas

Financial advisor, Aditya Shah, Founder, Hercules Advisors, first applauded Rajesh for continuing to invest in India despite residing overseas — a sign of long-term conviction in the domestic growth story.

Shah also mentioned that the investor should formulate his goal and must have bigger goals than only the marriage of his children. Education, as well as his own retirement, is something that he should cater for when he is investing in mutual funds.

The expert also pointed out that the portfolio is spread across too many funds, which may dilute returns and make monitoring complex. Instead of adding a new scheme, he advised consolidation and reallocation across four existing and well-aligned funds.

The suggested monthly SIP distribution is — HDFC Flexicap Rs 30,000, Bandhan Small Cap Rs 40,000, UTI Nifty Next 50 Index Rs 30,000 for passive and large-cap balance, and HDFC Midcap Rs 20,000, making the total SIP amount Rs 1.20 lakh. This allocation would streamline the portfolio while maintaining exposure across large, mid and small-cap segments, suitable for an 8–10 year investment horizon.

“He said after 8 to 10 years, he wants to lower down his allocation after which he should switch either to a balanced fund or slowly start to move towards debt funds when his goal is coming near. But good investments he has done. He can just tilt his investments into all of these four funds, and he should be okay,” Shah said.

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For the long term, Shah recommends that Rajesh Sahni should continue SIPs until he approaches his goal timeline. Once he is around three years away from requiring funds — particularly for his daughter's marriage — he should begin reducing equity exposure gradually.

This step-down transition should move the portfolio from high-risk equity to hybrid or debt funds. Two to three years before the goal, shifting from pure equity to balanced advantage or short-duration debt funds can help preserve gains. A final shift to debt one year before the goal would provide liquidity and minimise volatility risk. The principle is simple — as the goal approaches, wealth protection becomes more important than aggressive growth.

Expert take: Rajesh Sahni's portfolio reflects strong saving capacity, discipline and long-term thinking. With a structured SIP of Rs 1.2 lakh per month, targeted fund consolidation, and a gradual exit plan, he can confidently work towards his Rs 1 crore goal while continuing to build wealth for his children and future milestones.

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

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