New Delhi, Dec. 16 -- Imagine you've invested your hard-earned earnings in the equity markets, and all of a sudden, they go south. Well, the key in such situations remains that your (the investor's) sanity and balance should not follow suit.

Rather, this downturn may actually be an opportunity for you if you keep your head. In the equity markets, every fall generally has a bounce-back that can help you to gain immensely, provided you show some patience and stay the course.

"Crashes are painful, but they're also necessary - they're the market's way of purifying excess, humbling arrogance, and rewarding discipline," says Devang Mehta, Deputy Managing Director & CIO - Equity NDPMS at Spark Capital.

From his 25 years of experience in the I...