Mind Over Money| From badminton court to markets — discipline drives Shridatta Bhandwaldar’s ₹1 lakh crore AUM journey

In this edition of Mind Over Money, we step into the world of Shridatta Bhandwaldar, Head of Equities at Canara Robeco AMC, who manages over ₹1 lakh crore in equities.

For him, the discipline, focus, and resilience honed on the badminton court mirror the skills required to navigate volatile markets.

From avoiding unforced errors to anticipating the next move, Bhandwaldar draws powerful parallels between sport and investing — showing how fitness, music, and humility shape his approach to wealth creation and leadership in India’s dynamic equity landscape. Edited Excerpts –

Q) Thanks for taking the time out. You play badminton every day for 30–45 minutes. How has this routine helped you stay sharp in investment decision-making?

A) I play badminton 3-4 days a week. Firstly, this helps in being a more disciplined individual. Badminton is a demanding game in terms of the level of preparation for building stamina, one’s skill sets in not just focus, flexibility and reflexes but also in avoiding unforced errors.

Most importantly – you must build all these skill sets through persistent discipline and efforts. Making equity investment decisions, similarly, involves most of these attributes.

One has to be focused with high conviction; but at the same time, be flexible to appreciate changes in investment thesis.

One has to showcase discipline and hard work to build mental models for decision making over periods of time. Above all, investment decision making is best when one can avoid unforced errors.

Q) Is there a parallel between a badminton match and navigating equity markets?

A) Absolutely! If you play a badminton match, there would be lots of ups and downs just like markets. If you play with discipline, keep your reflexes alive and reduce your unforced errors – you can navigate the match better, just like in equity markets, all the time.

Over a period, if you build a sense of quickly anticipating which way the badminton opponent returns are coming from; it helps you to position yourself better for responses.

Similarly, in equity markets you have to anticipate possibilities of investment outcomes and keep your responses ready in terms of actions of allocation and selection of securities.

Q) Music is part of your daily life. Does it also inspire or calm you during volatile market phases?

A) Listening to Music is like meditation. I daily spend almost 30 mins listening to music before going to bed. It is an absolute bliss when you listen to good music which calms you down and allows you to involve yourself with something other than daily market-related aspects.

Music is soothing; both emotionally and physically. It always relaxes me, irrespective of how the day was in equity markets. Both badminton and music are good mind unwinding exercises.

Q) Managing over ₹1 lakh crore in equities is no small feat. What’s your secret to staying grounded under such responsibility?

A) I have spent almost 20 years in the equity markets. The more time you spend in the market; the more grounded you are likely to become as a human being. Market is a humbling place.

Market teaches you that you can only control input and investment processes and have no control over the outcomes (given the externality involved in businesses) in the short term.

Thus, the focus shifts to process and inputs which are key to success over a period of time. Realisation and reflection of mistakes that one makes and the importance of one’s efforts by the way of systematic hard work, keeps you grounded.

Q) In your view, does physical fitness translate into mental resilience for fund managers?

A) Fund management is a high pressure, high stress responsibility. You are dealing with someone else’s money, and expectations are always high from external and internal stakeholders.

Under such circumstances, it is critical to be fit physically and mentally. Playing sports helps one to be fit physically, which translates into mental and emotional resilience when things are adverse.

Q) How do you mentally switch off from the market after trading hours?

A) I don’t switch off from markets and research, except when I am playing sports, listening to music or unwinding in the evening with family at the dinner table.

Q) If you could describe your investing philosophy in three words, what would it be?

A) Scalable and capital efficient businesses backed by quality promoters/managers.

Q) Which quotes reflect your approach to life and investing?

A) Life Quote–

Life is like a badminton match. If you want to win, serve well, return well. Play cool and remember that the game starts with ‘LOVE ALL’.

Investment Quote-

Investing is a journey of self-discovery. It reveals your relationship with money, your tolerance with risk and your ability to stay disciplined in the face of uncertainty.

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