what would you recommend then?
Risk taking might depend on the person. I think that for most people without proven expertise its probably best to keep it simple and invest in diversified market without trying to pick things ( usually whats hot right now) or to try and time entry/exit..
I don't have funds recommendations. Right now i am actually 0% equity because of trading which is where my focus is.
Simple index funds should be enough for all. So pick your poison, maybe have some allocation to Large / next 50 / mid caps, Don't have to invest in all.
There is a lot of future uncertainty, things keep changing. Have some kind of allocation plan between different assets.
This is difficult, but if you feel confident about someone with good long term record, then can take active funds too.
Naren is good, Prashant jain is also good ( he looked foolish when we was buying psus some years back and his funds were struggling with everyone wanting quality stocks). Jain left HDFC.
I don't know about others.
So yeah, some simple diversified funds covering decent portion of the market, ignore small caps - esp today, try to manage allocation, move from whats very hot to other things if possible.
Can consider debt funds too as part of allocation for short/medium term needs and if needed to reduce volatility. 10y gilt/ gold can have negative correlation with equity too ( but i haven't tested this ).
Perhaps funds holding foreign equity.
Then just hold for longer term / continue SIPs. When tough times come, one gets really tested. For diversified funds, one can simply hold and if possible add more. Best times to invest has been during crashes and when past returns are poor ( ex 5year equity return less than FD). But dont expect markets to not crash further or to give immediate returns.
And then just focus on career instead of investing/trading stuff. Try to be more balanced, good times end and so do bad times.