Wishlist Capital has collaborated with Tata Asset Management to generate awareness among young women amid the rising share of women investors in the capital market in India.

A personal finance camp led by child’s rights NGO Udayan Care’s core committee member Parimal Chandra Das was organised on Friday, focusing on basic building blocks of personal finance, such as how inflation erodes idle cash and why starting to invest early magnifies the effect of compounding.

With studies showing nearly one in every four individual investors being women, the message to the students who participated in the camp was to raise awareness around risk, picking regulated avenues, and treating mutual funds as long-term investment vehicles. Students were shown how to speak to a Sebi-registered adviser, how a systematic investment plans (SIP) work, and how a five-to-ten-year horizon can steadily grow a small corpus.

“Many attendees are college-going women from underprivileged backgrounds, and we support them and their families. Around 1,250 girls are currently enrolled, and we have seen 3,000 alumnae gain employment to start supporting their families. Udayan Care organises two events a year and 13–14 sessions a month on personal finance and other skills,” Das said.

“Women investors are a lot bolder, more determined than they have ever been before. This reflects a real social change,” said Nilanjan Dey, a partner at Wishlist Capital. He said an SIP can begin as low as ₹100 a month, and disciplined, incremental investing beats sporadic speculation.

The camp also touched on retirement realities. With an average life expectancy of 72 and with many aiming to retire earlier, individuals may face 10–15 years of limited to no income. A systematic withdrawal plan after 25 to 30 years of regular investing can aid a person’s retirement years.

Pushan Chakraborty is a TT intern