Mumbai, Mar 23: On Friday, 20 March, 1 Finance hosted the inaugural Personal Finance Club Mumbai Meet-Up at The Westin Garden City, Goregaon, an invite-only evening that brought together 300+ attendees for a curated programme spanning ancient wisdom, modern investing, insurance literacy, and the systemic problem of mis-sold financial products. In a space deliberately free of sponsors, stalls, and product pitches, the focus was singular: learning, not selling.
The meet-up is part of 1 Finance’s broader financial education initiative, which spans the 1 Finance Magazine, a growing library of financial education books by experts and authors, and Personal Finance TV (PFTV), 1 Finance’s personal finance video channel on Instagram and YouTube, together building one of India’s most comprehensive, accessible ecosystems for financial literacy.
The key line-up for the evening included:
- Keynote — Arthashastra: Timeless Lessons for Modern Finance by Dr. Radhakrishnan Pillai, Founder-Director of CIILS and bestselling author of Corporate Chanakya. Pillai drew on Kautilya’s Arthashastra to connect ancient wisdom to modern financial decisions, leaving the audience with four enduring lessons: that budgeting is foundational to every household; that money demands conscious respect; that money is feminine in nature — flowing toward those who nurture it; and that finances are deeply emotional, making Samvad (open dialogue) an essential part of financial well-being.
- Financial Education Book Launch — Three titles by experts were unveiled: Do You Have Enough? by Bhuvanaa Shreeram (Co-founder, House of Alpha); Mutual Fund Playbook by Rajani Tandale (Senior Vice President – Mutual Fund, 1 Finance); and Insurance Made Simple by Manju Dhake (Head – Insurance Advisory Practice, 1 Finance).
- Documentary Screening and Discussion — MIS-SOLD, 1 Finance’s awareness documentary, gripped the room with its ground realities, prompting audiences to reflect on their own financial experiences. The post-screening panel with Kanan Bahl (Founder, Fingrowth Media & Co-director of Mis-sold), Kirtan Shah (Founder, Truvantha Wealth), and Deepak Uniyal (Founder, Insurance Samadhan) unpacked how mis-selling happens, who bears accountability, and its real cost to consumers. The Q&A extended the conversation into building awareness, promoting financial literacy, and strengthening regulatory policy.
- Panel Discussion and Audience Q&A — The panel made one thing clear: every financial decision has a ripple effect. A poorly structured loan impacts your tax liability; an underinsured life disrupts your investment plan. Panellists challenged the audience to stop thinking in silos and start seeing their finances as one connected system.The key panellists were Ritesh Srivastava (Founder, Freed), Brijmohan Lavaniya (Co-founder, TaxBuddy), Mahavir Chopra (Founder, Beshak.org), Animesh Hardia (SVP – Quantitative Research, 1 Finance & Editor of 1 Finance Magazine), and Anooj Mehta (VP – Partner Success, 1 Finance).
- Preeti Jha, Head – Strategic Alliance, 1 Finance said, “The Personal Finance Club was born from a simple but urgent belief, that every Indian deserves access to honest, unbiased financial education. We live in a world of information overload, yet genuine financial literacy remains out of reach for most. This meet-up, part of our broader education initiative at 1 Finance, is our way of creating a trusted, commerce-free space where people can engage with credible voices, confront real questions about their money, and walk away with clarity they did not have before. That is what drives us, and events like these are how we bring it to life”
CONCLUSION:
The Mumbai edition is only the beginning. 1 Finance plans to take the Personal Finance Club to more cities as an ongoing series, a regular, neutral platform for financial conversations, free from commercial influence.
