From selling mobile phones at 14, to becoming a billionaire: Nikhil Kamath’s self-made story is any filmmaker’s delight

Nikhil Kamath

Underdog stories are a favourite with the movie going audiences on any part of the planet. Over the years, Chak De! India, Dangal in Bollywood, to Moneyball, The Pursuit of Happyness in Hollywood- such inspiring dramas always click. And looks like we have another underdog story all set to be explored by filmmakers, based on the life of Nikhil Kamath, touted as India's brightest- and one of the youngest- investors.
From being a school dropout to becoming a billionaire, his journey is a story that a lot of filmmakers are chasing.

A son of a middle class bank employee who dropped out of school and became India's youngest billionaire at the age of 34, Kamath is a maverick at investing his own and other people's monies.

Proving that degrees are not the ultimate criteria for success, he became a part of Forbes Billionaires List 2020 & 2023 and the Self-Made Rich List 2022. Driven by his gut, the 36 year old, at the tender age of 14 was already selling mobile phones; at 17 was working at a call centre, trading in stocks which he would religiously study about after finishing work at 1am and he also ran a laundry business and medical store simultaneously.

From the age of 18, he took up a full time job of investing and ever since, which is for the last 18 years now, there's been no looking back as he went on to and in fact continues to leave an indelible mark in the world of finance and business.

His "made for movies" story that he dropped out of high school, worked at a call center answering support questions to being India's youngest billionaire, is being eyed on by a lot of filmmakers. It will be rather interesting to see the maverick investor's story which is an inspiration for the youth to made into feature film or a web show.

Trade expert Atul Mohan shares Kamath's story has potential to be made into a film, "Why not? Such films do work, filmmakers and audience both look for such stories. The only condition is they have to be made well, otherwise there have been examples when such films didn't work. Who doesn't love a well-made underdog story on the big screen? He was 14 when he started, his is a self made story."

Known for his techniques, knowledge and sharp mind, today everyone swears by Nikhil Kamath's choices in the investment market. Ask the entrepreneur what led him to this incredible point in his career today and he's quick to respond, "When I started out I was just having fun and chasing my curiosity like any young boy would at that age. There was no agenda or formula, I went with my gut and pursued something that was my interest and passion; it's as simple as that."

Considering how the entertainment industry is now a global village and booming with the digital age, would India's brightest investor ever consider putting his money on the entertainment business? Says Kamath, "Is it a lucrative business? Yes. Considering the OTT boom and the global awakening towards Indian cinema, I'd say it's a very dynamic field filled with lots of opportunities. I go where my intuition takes me and hopefully someday I just might take that plunge in the entertainment world as well."

Senior trade analyst Taran Adarsh shares, "We are in a day and age where audiences want to celebrate real life heroes, applaud achievements of those who are self-made and have carved a path for themselves despite challenges. Nikhil Kamath's story has all these ingredients & more to be made into a biopic. It is a very relevant story today. Rajkumar Hirani, Neeraj Pandey or Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra would be great choices to bring his life story on the big screen."

Currently, Nikhil continues to be the path-breaking investor he is with his dedication to investment in philanthropy at a large scale. He recently became not only just the 4th but also the youngest Indian to pledge a majority of his wealth through the Bill Gates and Melinda Gates' charity foundation. He also turned his highly viewed weekly podcast series into a podcast for charity where the panelists will donate a sum of money to the charity of the viewers' choice. He is extremely dedicated to the growth of India and was also part of a 3 member delegation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the White House in the USA for collaborative discussions aimed at growth and sustainability.

All in all, Nikhil Kamath is a shining example of how anything is possible with persistence, hard work and belief as the net worth of this ‘school drop and now billionaire' only grows with every passing year.