As you watch Farida rush her 10-year-old to school or going about daily mundane chores, you would be forgiven if you think she’s another yummy mummy. You couldn't be more wrong. If you see her rushing through a supermarket counter, it’s not because she has a lunch date with her girly gang. She wants to rush back home to switch on the telly. No! She isn't hooked to saas-bahu serials or Sex in the City or Friends. Business news channels are her thing. She trades stocks and shares in the market. Online trading and making money on it is her job.

Reena Arora, mother to 12-year-old twins, lives in Delhi. Sociology major, she does voluntary work for various NGOs. Her husband is the MD of a reputed MNC. An unlikely candidate for the stock market. She could have easily spent her time shopping with friends and lunching at resto-bars. But she prefers to spend her time at online trading. You would be surprised at her understanding of the market. And yes…she isn't telling but her husband lets the cat out of the bag…she has made dollops of dough in the market.

Thousands of Indian housewives have been bitten by the trading bug. Seemingly ordinary, women whom you wouldn't associate with the stock market, are serious traders and know the market moves inside out.  Trading is no longer a male bastion. Like everywhere else, women have invaded it in a big way and are making heads turn. With improved cable network in urban homes and broadband Internet, they have easy access to market information. They don't need to step out of their living rooms and can make a neat amount by trading.

Sheer convenience

The sheer convenience of the entire operation coupled with the lure of making big bucks is what attracts these women. Farida says, "My love affair with the stock market began when I worked with Dow Jones. After my son's birth I gave up working but continued to dabble in shares. I have been trading for many years. Nowadays, it has become even easier with the Internet. There are so many sites that one can learn from and get started."

Hooked

Sonia, Mehta, a chartered accountant in Delhi, decided to take a few years off her career to look after her newborn. But soon she found herself getting bored and restless. She decided to play the stock market. Today, she is hooked. "I don't need to leave my son at home and go out to work. I have hired a good help to take care of my son. This is a great work-from-home option for women who like to earn money but don't want to leave their home and kids."

A peep into any chat site, especially women's sites, would reveal large number of women chatting, exchanging information, tips and helping each other in the stock market. Trade analysts liken the scenario to that of Japan where the housewives are shaking up the market. Called the Kimono traders, Japanese housewives have ditched their traditional subservient image for the world of currency trading — influencing both international markets and Japan's economy. In India from the uber rich designer-dress clad women in the metros to middle class housewives in Madurai and other smaller towns, women are trying their hands at trading.

You don't need to do much to become a part of the trading ring. Open a demat account, hire an online broker and you are ready to start trading. Aarti, who has been trading in the Mumbai stock exchange for the past decade, says, "Trading is easy and lucrative but one needs to be careful. Those who want to enter the arena should educate themselves and proceed with caution. I have burnt my fingers, lost some money but also made big returns. But one has to devote a lot of time to be able to make serious money."

Farida adds, "Before you start trading with real money, deal with imaginary money to test your understanding and judgment." What she means is that decide to invest with an imaginary amount on a particular stock which you have followed and see which way you are going. Both Farida and Aarti are of the opinion that they hear out the trade pundits but follow their own instincts.

Farida says, "My sixth sense works like magic for me." Aarti says, "along with your gut instinct, it is also important to have contacts in the market."