– Why Smarter Investing Begins With Changing Our Mindset –

An Exclusive Conversation With Franklin Templeton India

For most of us, conversations about money begin with a familiar question, “How much did the market go up today?” Rarely do we consider the more important query: “Are my financial decisions helping me achieve my long-term goals?” Even within the Parsi community, renowned for its entrepreneurial spirit, financial prudence and emphasis on securing future generations, investing can often become clouded by uncertainty, market noise and emotional decision-making.

That distinction lies at the heart of Franklin Templeton India’s latest investor education initiative, ‘CHANGE THE SOCH’, a nationwide movement that encourages us all to rethink the way we view investing. The campaign moves beyond products and short-term market movements to focus on something far more fundamental: the mindset that shapes our financial decisions and our relationship with money.

With over seven decades of global investment expertise and three decades in India, Franklin Templeton has witnessed the evolution of Indian investors from cautious savers to increasingly informed wealth creators. Yet many behavioural habits continue to stand in the way of sound financial decision-making. Emotional investing, fear of market volatility, delayed financial planning and the belief that investing is only for experts, remain surprisingly common.

What makes ‘Change The Soch’ particularly compelling is that it extends well beyond advertising. Over the recent past, the team at Franklin Templeton, travelled over 2,500 miles across 7 states and 21 cities, engaging directly with thousands of people, especially women from remarkably diverse backgrounds, including farmers, entrepreneurs, teachers, students, healthcare workers, army and self-help groups. The journey became less about delivering financial lessons and more about listening, understanding and breaking long-held myths surrounding investing.

For Parsis, whose legacy has always been built on foresight, enterprise and creating enduring value, these lessons are especially relevant. Whether you’re planning for retirement, preserving family wealth, supporting your children’s aspirations or simply looking to make smarter financial decisions, the principles of disciplined investing remain universal.

To understand the thinking behind this initiative and what today’s investors can learn from it, Parsi Times spoke with Mr. Avinash Satwalekar, CFA – President of Franklin Templeton India.

PT: The title of your campaign, ‘Change The Soch’, is simple yet thought-provoking. Before we discuss investing, what mindset are you actually trying to change?

Avinash Satwalekar: For generations, money has often been viewed as a man’s responsibility and investing as something that happens only after every other priority has been met. Women have traditionally been expected to save, but not necessarily to invest or make financial decisions. Change The Soch is about challenging those invisible assumption. It’s about changing the mindset that investing is complicated or that it’s only for the wealthy or even that financial decisions belong to someone else, and that women can’t handle money matters!

We believe financial empowerment begins much earlier than the first investment. It begins when a woman feels she has the confidence to ask questions, the right knowledge to make informed decisions, and the belief that her financial future is equally important. That’s why this journey is built around listening before educating. We travelled across India not to tell women what they should do with their money, but to understand what has prevented them from participating in the first place. Because if we can change that Soch, not just for women but for the larger society, the investment will follow.

PT: ‘Change The Soch’ evolved into a nationwide journey rather than remaining a traditional ad-campaign. What prompted that decision?

Avinash Satwalekar: Advertising can start conversations, but real understanding develops when you meet people where they are. India is incredibly diverse. People’s financial concerns differ depending on where they live, what they do and what stage of life they’re in.

We therefore decided to leave the boardroom and travel across the country! Over the course of the campaign, we covered approximately 2,547 miles across seven states and visited 21 cities. We interacted with people from vastly different backgrounds because investor education cannot follow a one-size-fits-all approach.

Listening became just as important as speaking. Those conversations gave us invaluable insights into the practical barriers people face. Sometimes it was fear of market volatility. Sometimes it was uncertainty about where to begin. Sometimes people believed investing required large sums of money. Each conversation helped us refine how we communicate, leading to better financial prudence.

PT: Speaking of financial prudence, the Parsi community has traditionally been known for it, with many families believing in saving first and spending later. Is there a difference between being a disciplined saver and being a successful investor?

Avinash Satwalekar: The two go hand in hand, but they are not quite the same. Saving provides financial security, while investing gives your money the opportunity to grow and keep pace with life’s evolving needs. One of the biggest mindset shifts we hope to encourage through ‘Change The Soch’ is recognising that simply putting money aside may not always be enough, particularly when inflation steadily erodes the purchasing power over time.

Communities like the Parsis have long valued financial discipline, careful planning and living within their means. Those are wonderful foundations for successful investing. The next step is to channel those savings into well-considered investments aligned with long-term goals. Investing doesn’t require extraordinary market knowledge. It requires clarity of purpose, patience and consistency. When those qualities come together, disciplined saving naturally evolves into disciplined wealth creation.

PT: Our community also has one of the oldest demographic profiles in the country. A large number of community members are either retired or approaching retirement, while many others are supporting ageing parents. What financial advice would you offer them?

Avinash Satwalekar: One lesson we learnt repeatedly during our journey across India is that financial planning is deeply personal. Every stage of life brings different priorities and responsibilities. For those approaching or living in retirement, the focus naturally shifts towards preserving financial independence while ensuring that savings continue to support future needs.

Healthcare costs, longer life expectancy and inflation have all changed the retirement landscape. That’s why planning should begin well before retirement and evolve as circumstances change. Equally important is reviewing one’s financial plan periodically rather than assuming that what worked ten years ago will continue to meet future requirements.

Perhaps the most valuable advice is to avoid making investment decisions based solely on short-term market movements. Retirement planning is built over decades, not market cycles. A disciplined, goal-oriented approach generally serves investors far better than reacting emotionally to temporary fluctuations.

PT: One aspect of the campaign that immediately attracted attention was its decision to place women at the centre of financial conversations. Why was that important?

Avinash Satwalekar: The idea emerged from a simple observation. In many Indian households, financial conversations are still led primarily by men, despite women playing an increasingly important role in earning, saving and planning for the future. Through our Change The Soch campaign, we sought to symbolically encourage greater participation, confidence and ownership among women in financial decision-making. Our journey across India reinforced this belief. Of the 4,000+ people we engaged with, more than 2,800 were women, including farmers, entrepreneurs, teachers, healthcare professionals and members of self-help groups. Their enthusiasm affirmed that investor education is most powerful when it is truly inclusive.

PT: Parsis have produced generations of entrepreneurs and professionals who understand the value of building businesses over decades. Are there lessons from entrepreneurship that also apply to long-term investing?

Avinash Satwalekar: Absolutely! Building a successful business and building long-term wealth share many common principles. Entrepreneurs understand that sustainable success rarely happens overnight. They invest time, effort and resources patiently, knowing that meaningful results take years to materialise.

Investing follows a very similar philosophy. Markets will experience periods of optimism and uncertainty, but successful investors remain focused on their long-term objectives rather than short-term distractions. During our Change The Soch journey, we met entrepreneurs across different parts of the country who displayed remarkable resilience. They understood that temporary setbacks are part of every journey, whether in business or investing. That mindset, remaining committed to long-term goals while adapting thoughtfully along the way, is one of the strongest foundations for wealth creation.

PT: Many Parsi parents and grandparents place enormous emphasis on education and often invest heavily in their children’s or grandchildren’s future. How should families balance these aspirations with their own retirement planning?

Avinash Satwalekar: It’s one of the most important conversations families can have. Across India, we met parents who were deeply committed to giving the next generation every possible opportunity, whether through education, professional development or financial support. Those aspirations are admirable, but they should be supported by thoughtful financial planning.

Instead of viewing education, retirement and other life goals separately, it’s helpful to approach them as part of one comprehensive financial journey. Different goals often have different time horizons, and that allows investors to plan accordingly instead of making decisions under pressure later.

Perhaps the biggest shift in mindset is recognising that taking care of your own long-term financial wellbeing ultimately benefits your family too. Financial independence enables parents and grandparents to support future generations from a position of strength rather than sacrifice.

PT: Behavioural finance tells us that emotions often influence financial decisions more than logic. Did your journey reinforce that?

Avinash Satwalekar: People often think investment mistakes happen because they lack information. In reality, many decisions are driven by emotions. Fear can stop people from investing. Excitement can make people chase short-term market trends. Overconfidence can encourage unnecessary risk. Panic can cause investors to exit markets during temporary downturns. Understanding these behavioural patterns is an important part of financial literacy. Markets naturally move through cycles. Long-term investing requires patience and perspective. That’s why our conversations focused as much on behaviour as on products.

PT: One of the most repeated pieces of advice in investing is to “stay invested.” Yet this remains one of the hardest things for investors to do. Why?

Avinash Satwalekar: Because markets test emotions. When markets rise, many investors feel they have missed out. When markets fall, many feel they should exit. Both reactions are understandable, but neither necessarily supports long-term wealth creation.

Disciplined investing requires looking beyond today’s headlines and focusing instead on future goals, whether that’s funding a child’s education, planning retirement or building financial independence. That’s where systematic investing, careful planning and regular investing habits become valuable. Rather than trying to predict every market movement, investors can focus on consistency. In many ways, successful investing resembles cultivating a tree. Growth doesn’t happen overnight, but with patience, care and time, the results can be remarkably rewarding.

PT: A significant number of our readers have accumulated wealth over decades through property, businesses or careful savings. As families become smaller and succession planning grows increasingly important, should wealth preservation also become part of the investment conversation?

Avinash Satwalekar: Creating wealth is only one part of the financial journey. Preserving it thoughtfully and ensuring it continues to serve future generations is equally important. While every family’s circumstances are different, it’s valuable to review financial plans periodically and ask whether investments still reflect current goals, responsibilities and life stages. A well-considered investment approach should evolve alongside changing family needs rather than remain static.

One of the recurring themes throughout our nationwide conversations was that financial planning isn’t a one-time event. It is an ongoing process of learning, reviewing and adapting. That mindset helps families remain better prepared for both opportunities and uncertainties over the long term.

PT: One message that seems to emerge repeatedly from your campaign is that investing should become part of everyday conversations and not something discussed only during market highs. How do we build that culture?

Avinash Satwalekar: It begins at home. Families discuss education, careers, health and major life decisions together. Money deserves the same openness. When children observe parents planning finances thoughtfully, when spouses make financial decisions together and when young adults begin investing early instead of postponing it, healthy financial habits become part of everyday life rather than occasional events.

Investor education isn’t about creating experts overnight. It’s about helping ordinary people make better decisions consistently. And that’s ultimately what ‘Change The Soch’ hopes to achieve!