Veteran investor Raamdeo Agrawal, chairman of Motilal Oswal, approaches reading with an intensity rarely seen among corporate leaders. For Agrawal, a book is not a casual pastime; he carries his current read everywhere and, if completely engrossed, will even take a two-day leave from work to absorb its pages entirely.
Speaking on Groww's podcast "Market ki Baat," Agrawal shared that his foundational understanding of investing stems not from constant market data, but from deep engagement with select books. His philosophy challenges the modern tendency to skim many titles, instead urging investors to choose just two exceptional books and study them with obsessive depth. "Understand the essence of those books and make them a part of your knowledge system," Agrawal advises, emphasizing that the true value lies in how a text challenges, shapes, and expands an investor's independent thinking, regardless of full agreement with the author.
Agrawal's Seven-Book Investing Canon
For those aspiring to cultivate a robust market mindset, Agrawal recommends a highly curated list from global investing legends:
- One Up On Wall Street – Peter Lynch (1989): Lynch's classic highlights the inherent advantage everyday individuals hold over institutional analysts. He argues that significant investment opportunities are often found in daily routines—observing trends in supermarkets or local businesses can lead to "tenbagger" returns.
- Warren Buffett’s Annual Shareholders Letters: Agrawal strongly recommends these letters from Berkshire Hathaway's reports as an unvarnished masterclass in business history and corporate strategy. Buffett's letters offer a multi-decade education in his investment philosophy, capital allocation, and long-term economic outlook.
- The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life – Alice Schroeder: For a comprehensive narrative, Agrawal suggests this biography. It chronicles Buffett's journey from starting the Buffett Partnership in 1956 to aggressively accumulating Berkshire Hathaway shares, which became his primary investment vehicle.
- Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits – Philip A. Fisher: A cornerstone of Agrawal’s personal library, he labels this an absolute "must-read" for serious equity market participants. He has read Fisher's masterpiece multiple times, treating it as a permanent guide for qualitative company analysis.
- Expectations Investing – Michael Mauboussin and Alfred Rappaport: This book revolutionizes stock analysis by suggesting investors first examine the current stock price. By reverse-engineering it, one can determine market expectations for future performance and then assess if those expectations are realistic or prone to disruption.
- The Theory of Investment Value – John Burr Williams (1938): While many discuss "value," few grasp its intrinsic determination. Agrawal highlights this 1938 classic for its systematic explanation of the mathematical foundation of intrinsic value through discounted cash flows, making it essential for fundamental analysts.
- Mastering the Market Cycle – Howard Marks: Marks, from Oaktree Capital, meticulously details how markets oscillate between optimism and pessimism, driven by human emotion and economic forces. This book teaches investors to identify where the market stands in its cyclical pendulum swing.
Concluding his philosophy, Agrawal states, "Every book contains one or two lessons that can completely alter your mindset. Do not just read them – adopt them into your life and your investments. Only then will you consistently become a better investor."