Stock market volatility, of the kind that we are seeing almost on a daily basis, works as a red light for the typical retail investor.

That need not be the case, says the chief executive of mutual fund rating firm Value Research, Dhirendra Kumar, as he shares his mantras for cracking equities through mutual funds.

1. Do not invest in lump-sums

If you have Rs 1 lakh to invest, invest Rs 10,000 every month. Inculcate the discipline of investing regularly. Do not try to time the market.

2. Ignore market corrections

You can be immune to market corrections if you are looking at a 5-15 year horizon. The secular trend of equity markets is always northward.

3. Mutual fund returns are attractive

If you had invested Rs 10,000 every month for the last 10 years (Rs 12 lakh) in any of the 27 equity funds in existence, it would be worth anywhere from Rs 24 lakh (LIC [Get Quote] equity fund) to Rs 1.1 crore (Reliance [Get Quote] Growth fund) today. That means an impressive return of 70-100 per cent.

4. Real estate funds will take time to take-off

The real estate market is illiquid, rigged and totally non-transparent. There will be complexities in working out daily valuations. I think these funds are being launched a decade too soon (the Securities and Exchange Board of India has given the go-ahead earlier this week).