Carnelian’s Shift Strategy is all about identifying the winds of change—and positioning ahead of time to ride them. This fund is led by two veterans of Edelweiss, Vikas Khemani and Manoj Bahety, who together bring decades of market wisdom and a deep understanding of how structural shifts shape long-term wealth creation.

Vikas Khemani, a Chartered Accountant and CFA charter holder, spent 17 years at Edelweiss where he served as CEO of Edelweiss Securities. During his time there, he built and scaled multiple businesses—from institutional equities to investment banking and equity research—into dominant players. Now at the helm of Carnelian, he manages over $1.3 billion and is known across Corporate India for his strategic vision and capital market insight.

His co-founder, Manoj Bahety, also a CA and CFA, complements the team with his sharp analytical edge. At Edelweiss, Manoj led thematic and mid-cap research and even pioneered forensic research, bringing a layer of rigor that few research heads could match. Together, they launched Carnelian in 2019 with the goal of capturing once-in-a-decade opportunities.

The philosophy behind the Shift Strategy is rooted in the structural transformation unfolding in India’s manufacturing sector. Global supply chains are realigning, with companies across the world seeking alternatives to China—a move that plays right into India’s strengths. Combine that with a wave of government reforms, cost competitiveness, and strong domestic consumption, and you have the perfect setup for a manufacturing-led economic surge. According to their estimates, India’s manufacturing GDP is poised to double in the next five years.

To capitalize on this, the Shift Strategy focuses on companies that have niche capabilities and business leadership within the manufacturing ecosystem. These aren’t just any companies—they’re ones that are expected to consistently grow earnings by over 20% annually over a 3–5 year horizon. Whether it’s specialized manufacturing for global exports, import substitution, or digital-enabled industrial players, the strategy aims to be where the next wave of wealth is being created.

The portfolio typically holds around 25 stocks, with a strong tilt toward mid and small caps. These are the segments where under-the-radar businesses are quietly scaling up, benefiting from global tailwinds and domestic reforms. It’s a concentrated, high-conviction portfolio that doesn’t try to play the entire market—it plays to win in the segments it understands best.

Minimum investment stands at ₹50 lakhs, making it accessible to serious investors who believe in structural bets and long-term compounding.

Enclosing a webinar done with the fund manager – PMS AIF WORLD x Carnelian

Outperform the benchmark BSE 500 by 5-7% over a period of 3 – 5 years.

Investment philosophy is designed to invest in structural growth businesses, run by great managements at fair valuation within Carnelian’s risk-reward framework.

Believe investing success is an outcome of making good decisions consistently over a long period of time. Good decisions are those which are made “objectively, free of any bias”, considering “probability of outcome” and factoring “risk reward”.

Puts utmost importance to capital protection, hence subject every company through Carnelian’s proprietary CLEAR forensic research framework before investing. Believe in being patient and long term.

“SHIFT Strategy” is a Multicap Portfolio with a focus on Mid & Small caps to tap niche manufacturing businesses that gain from global supply diversification, recent policy reforms, and cost competitiveness.

 India is set to benefit from the emergence of manufacturing-led opportunities due to Global supply chain diversification from China, Recent government reforms & initiatives, Cost competitiveness and  Strong domestic markets. Detailed research reveals multi-billion, multi-decade opportunities for manufacturing sectors in India.

This strategy aims to invest in the companies with niche capabilities and business leadership, expected to grow earnings > 20% (CAGR) over the investment horizon of 3-5 years across various sectors.

This strategy is sector agnostic and Multicap with a predominant focus on Mid and small caps.