Down 96%: Why Is a Star Investor Still Hanging on to These Penny Stocks?
When a rock-star investor—nicknamed the “Warren Buffett of India”—keeps a company in his pocket after its stock drops 96%, everybody in investing wants to know why. What secret is he seeing that the rest of us are missing? Is he staring at a hidden gem the market ignored, or is this a trap that keeps mugging new investors?
These questions are buzzing around two firms still in the portfolio of Ashish Dhawan, founder of ChrysCapital and a name that Indian investors respect. The first, Dish TV, and the second, Palred Technologies, are both in the penny-stock club, down over 80% from their all-time highs. Even with the free fall, Dhawan has not hit the sell button.
Ashish Dhawan: The Investor Behind the Moves
Anyone who watches Indian stocks knows Ashish Dhawan. The investor turned philanthropist has a reputation for spotting growth stories before they hit the headlines. From the driver’s seat of ChrysCapital, one of India’s biggest private equity funds, Dhawan has loaded up on rights from IT services to healthcare and watched them multiply.
Beyond his prowess in markets, Dhawan is also the name behind the Central Square Foundation, a non-profit that strives to raise the bar for school education in India. His investing style is a hybrid of value and growth, usually zooming in on mid- and small-cap companies that can produce outsized returns.
His publicly disclosed portfolio now lists 14 stocks valued at over ₹3,351 crore, per Trendlyne. Yet, two names command attention—not for what they’ve gained, but for the sheer magnitude of their losses.
**Dish TV: A Decade of Patience in the Red**
Dish TV India Ltd, born in 1988, is the name most people associate with Direct-to-Home (DTH) entertainment. With the DishTV, d2h, and Zing Super brands, the firm once ruled India’s Pay-TV universe.
The past ten years, however, have been punishing. The spread of smart TVs, low-cost broadband, and streaming giants like Netflix, Disney+ Hotstar, and JioCinema has chipped away at Dish TV’s subscriber numbers. Sales have trended downward, and profit has remained a stranger.
The numbers cut deep. The stock zoomed to an all-time peak of ₹144. Today it crawls at ₹5—an eye-watering 96% loss. From its 52-week peak of ₹16, it has slid nearly 70%.
Even so, Ashish Dhawan has kept a slice since 2016 and still holds 1.6% of the firm, valued at roughly ₹14.4 crore. More encouragingly, the company has trimmed its financial wounds. Losses shrank from ₹1,655 crore in FY20 to ₹488 crore in FY25. Net debt, meanwhile, dropped from ₹1,784 crore five years ago to a lean ₹35 crore today, highlighting a big step in capital control.
Dish TV’s annual report hints at an appetite for change. Chairman and Executive Director Manoj Dobhal confessed that streaming giants pose a threat, but he pointed to fresh innovations and revised plans to keep viewers. Whether those moves will actually shift the momentum stays to be seen.
**Palred Technologies: A wager on pTron**
Palred Technologies Ltd launched in 1999 and plays in the electronics and digital lifestyle space. Its main arm, Palred Electronics Pvt. Ltd, runs the pTron brand, which delivers mobile accessories, wearables, and audio gear.
After an upbeat start, the firm has found steady growth harder to grasp. Following strong figures in FY22 and FY23, sales slid, caught by fierce competition from bigger global players and rising marketing costs. Losses kept piling up, and the stock chart tells the same painful story.
Palred Technologies’ stock has plummeted from its peak of ₹352 to ₹53, wiping out 85% of its value. In the last year alone, it has tumbled 63%, sliding from a 52-week high of ₹143.
Dhawan first bought Palred shares back in 2015 and still owns a 5.5% slice of the company, now worth around ₹3.6 crore.
The company’s leadership remains convinced that a rebound is in the works. In its FY25 annual report, Chairperson and Managing Director Palem Supriya Reddy acknowledged recent results disappointed but outlined a fresh plan: stricter cost controls, reviving weak product lines through innovation, expanding fast-delivery offerings, and enhancing the overall customer journey.
Penny Stocks: Risk and Reward
Penny stocks usually keep everyday investors at bay. They’re erratic, often bleed red ink, and can wipe out your money. Dish TV and Palred Technologies fit that mold: years of red ink, declining prices, and hazy outlooks.
Still, Dhawan’s ongoing support hints at a hidden angle. He might be eyeing undervalued assets, weighing the chance for smart buys, or believing in a comeback that others have already written off.
For many investors, these kinds of bets feel too risky. Yet for pros like Dhawan, they offer what he calls asymmetric opportunities: you lose less because the price is already low, but if the stock recovers even a little, the gain could be huge.
The Bigger Question
So why does Ashish Dhawan keep these names in his portfolio? The answer probably has to do with his uncommon risk tolerance and long-range vision—qualities that set top investors apart.
Win or lose, his choice to stick with two stocks that have dropped over 80% is a case worth studying. For everyday investors, it shows that bright, trendy stocks can turn dull quickly, while what seems like junk can hide real worth.
Right now, Dish TV and Palred Technologies still trade as penny stocks. Yet with an investor of Dhawan’s caliber still in their corner, the market is tuned in.
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