The Long Game

Mihir Shah

Conversations about financial independence, investing, and the journey to financial freedom. The Long Game is a podcast about financial independence, investing, and the real stories behind building long-term wealth. In each episode, I speak with people who are on the path to financial freedom—or have already achieved it—to understand the decisions, strategies, and lessons that shaped their journey. We explore how they approached investing, the mindset shifts that helped them think long term, and the mistakes that taught them the most. Instead of chasing quick wins or get-rich-quick ideas, The Long Game focuses on thoughtful conversations about building wealth, making smarter financial decisions, and designing a life where money gives you more freedom and optionality. If you're interested in financial independence, investing, and learning from people who have thoughtfully built wealth over time, this podcast is for you. New conversations released regularly.

  1. ₹1 Lakh Salary, No Savings — The EMI Trap Indians Ignore

    14h ago

    ₹1 Lakh Salary, No Savings — The EMI Trap Indians Ignore

    A high income does not automatically mean financial strength. Many Indians are earning well, but still feel financially stressed because most of their salary is already committed to EMIs, rent, lifestyle upgrades, loans, and family responsibilities. In this episode of The Long Game, I speak with Megha Bang about the real money problems Indian households face — especially when people look financially successful from the outside but have very little savings, emergency fund, insurance, or investing discipline. We talk about: Why high income does not always reduce money stressHow people get trapped in phone EMIs, car EMIs, home loans, and personal loansWhy total EMIs should ideally stay around 40–45% of incomeWhy home loan EMI should ideally stay around 30–35% of monthly in-hand incomeWhat to check before buying a houseWhy dual income does not automatically mean you should take a bigger home loanWhy upgrading lifestyle after promotion can become a trapThe basics every household should fix: budgeting, emergency fund, insurance, and investingWhat money conversations couples should have before marriageWhy Indian families avoid talking about money with parentsNRI money mistakes around bank accounts, property, taxation, and complianceWhy ULIPs often fail as both insurance and investmentThe warning signs that your lifestyle is controlling youThis conversation is not about looking rich. It is about becoming financially strong. If you'd like to share your story with us, please fill out the form: https://forms.gle/Ha9nEbXyJWm3ow4x7 If you would like to connect with us and share your feedback, please drop an email at financewithmihir@gmail.com

    25 min
  2. A Finance Professor’s Wife Built 2X His Portfolio — Here’s Why

    6d ago

    A Finance Professor’s Wife Built 2X His Portfolio — Here’s Why

    A finance professor. A disciplined investor. And one surprising result: his wife’s portfolio became more than 2x his. In this episode of The Long Game, I speak with Dr. Vidhu Shekhar, who has seen finance from academia, banking, private equity, fintech, and behavioral finance. But the most powerful lesson from this conversation is surprisingly simple: Personal finance is not stock picking. A lot of smart salaried people think investing means finding the next hot stock, chasing IPOs, timing trends, or following what everyone is talking about online. But Dr. Shekhar explains why that approach often hurts people more than it helps. In this conversation, we discuss: Why personal finance is different from active investingWhy stock picking is a full-time professionHow his wife built more than 2x his portfolio through disciplined investingWhy boring investments often create better long-term wealthWhy FOMO and loss aversion destroy investor returnsWhy SIP discipline matters more than knowing everythingWhat young earners should do first: health insurance, SIP, and simple allocationWhy Instagram finance advice can be oversimplified or misleadingHow AI may change finance careersThe one principle he would use to build long-term wealthThis episode is not about getting rich quickly. It is about building wealth the boring, disciplined, practical way — and avoiding the mistakes that smart people keep making. If you'd like to share your story with us, please fill out the form: https://forms.gle/Ha9nEbXyJWm3ow4x7 If you would like to connect with us and share your feedback, please drop an email at financewithmihir@gmail.com

    14 min
  3. ₹1.7 Cr Is Enough to Retire? The FIRE Math Most Indians Miss

    May 23

    ₹1.7 Cr Is Enough to Retire? The FIRE Math Most Indians Miss

    Financial freedom sounds simple online: save, invest, hit your FIRE number, retire. But what if the number itself is the wrong starting point? In this episode of The Long Game, I sit down with Husslefreewealth / Pankaj Sir to talk about the real math behind financial independence in India — and why random targets like ₹1 Cr, ₹5 Cr, or ₹10 Cr can be misleading if you don’t understand your expenses, real return, asset allocation, inflation, and health costs. We also discuss his own journey from buying a house under family pressure, paying a huge EMI, making mistakes like ULIPs and home loan prepayment, questioning SIPs, and eventually achieving financial independence at 39. In this conversation, we cover: Why your FIRE number depends on expenses, not social media formulasWhether ₹1.7 Cr can actually be enough to retire in IndiaWhy real return matters more than headline market returnsWhy SIP may not be ideal for every investorActive funds vs index fundsWhy health insurance alone may not protect your retirementHow lifestyle comparison quietly destroys wealthThe simple question he asks before spending moneyWhat financial freedom actually changes after you reach itThis is not generic retirement advice. It is a practical conversation about how real people should think about money, freedom, spending, risk, and enough. If you’re serious about financial independence in India, this episode will make you rethink your number. If you'd like to share your story with us, please fill out the form: https://forms.gle/Ha9nEbXyJWm3ow4x7 If you would like to connect with us and share your feedback, please drop an email at financewithmihir@gmail.com

    25 min

About

Conversations about financial independence, investing, and the journey to financial freedom. The Long Game is a podcast about financial independence, investing, and the real stories behind building long-term wealth. In each episode, I speak with people who are on the path to financial freedom—or have already achieved it—to understand the decisions, strategies, and lessons that shaped their journey. We explore how they approached investing, the mindset shifts that helped them think long term, and the mistakes that taught them the most. Instead of chasing quick wins or get-rich-quick ideas, The Long Game focuses on thoughtful conversations about building wealth, making smarter financial decisions, and designing a life where money gives you more freedom and optionality. If you're interested in financial independence, investing, and learning from people who have thoughtfully built wealth over time, this podcast is for you. New conversations released regularly.