India's Mutual Fund industry is seeing a broader positive trend, with more women taking on meaningful portfolio responsibility across asset managers. In recognition of International Women's Day 2026, this article profiles three women fund managers across equities and fixed income, focusing on how they think about process, risk, and portfolio construction, along with select observable outcomes over their tenures.
Key highlights
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Sunaina Da Cunha (Co-CIO (Debt) at Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC): A structured, risk-aware credit investor focused on liquidity, downside controls, and interest rate cycle management; the ABSL Credit Risk strategy has delivered strong long-term outcomes despite a tougher phase following credit events and issuer-specific downgrades.
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Meenakshi Dawar, Senior Fund Manager – Equity at Nippon India Mutual Fund: Runs a disciplined value framework that looks beyond low P/E labels, backed by guardrails on position sizing and diversification; the Nippon India Value Fund has meaningfully outpaced its benchmark over her tenure.
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Rajasa Kakulavarapu, Portfolio Manager and Research Analyst at Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund: An emerging manager with strong research roots, aligned with the firm’s GARP-oriented construct; her work emphasises business quality and valuation discipline, with a clear focus on risk-aware portfolio construction.
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