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Start learning the Indian stock market
Nine short steps in a sensible order. Each one has articles to read, a tool to try, a quick self-check and a paper exercise. The goal is to help you build a learning process before you risk money — not to tell you what to buy.
- 01How the Indian market works
- 02Open an account and understand orders
- 03Read a price chart
- 04Manage risk: stop-loss and position size
- 05Invest regularly: SIP vs lumpsum
- 06IPOs: how they work and what GMP is
- 07F&O: understand the risks first
- 08Read an option chain
- 09Practise before risking money
Step 1 of 9
How the Indian market works
By the end: You can explain what Nifty 50 and Sensex are and read a day's index move.
Read
Try it
Key terms
Nifty 50 · Sensex · NSE · BSE · Market capitalisation
Check yourself
Self-check only — nothing is recorded.
1. What is the Nifty 50?
2. The Sensex is the benchmark index of which exchange?
3. If the Nifty 50 rises 1% in a day, what does that mean?
Paper exercise
Write down today's Nifty 50 and Sensex levels and their % change. Tomorrow, check again and note which moved more in percentage terms.
Step 2 of 9
Open an account and understand orders
By the end: You know the difference between demat and trading accounts and between market and limit orders.
Read
Try it
Key terms
Demat account · Trading account · Broker · Market order · Limit order
Check yourself
Self-check only — nothing is recorded.
1. What does a demat account do?
2. A limit order…
3. Why compare brokers' charges before opening an account?
Paper exercise
From each broker's own website, note three things for two brokers: account opening cost, annual account charges, and delivery brokerage. Write the date you checked, since fees change.
Step 3 of 9
Read a price chart
By the end: You can read a candlestick and find recent highs and lows on a chart.
Read
Try it
Key terms
Candlestick · OHLC · Volume · 52-week high and low
Check yourself
Self-check only — nothing is recorded.
1. A single daily candlestick shows…
2. An 'up' candle usually means…
3. Why look at more than one candle?
Paper exercise
Open a daily chart of any instrument. Find the highest high and lowest low of the last 20 candles and write both down.
Step 4 of 9
Manage risk: stop-loss and position size
By the end: You can plan a trade's exit level and the amount you could lose before entering.
Read
Try it
Practise in the paper-trading simulator →
Key terms
Stop-loss order · Position sizing · Risk-reward ratio · Paper trading
Check yourself
Self-check only — nothing is recorded.
1. A stop-loss order is meant to…
2. Position sizing means…
3. Which statement is true?
Paper exercise
Before each paper trade, write: your entry, the level where you would admit you were wrong, and the rupee amount you would lose if that happens.
Step 5 of 9
Invest regularly: SIP vs lumpsum
By the end: You understand SIPs, lumpsum investing and fund costs, and can test scenarios in a calculator.
Read
Try it
Key terms
SIP · Mutual fund · NAV · Expense ratio · Direct plan and regular plan
Check yourself
Self-check only — nothing is recorded.
1. What is a SIP?
2. Do SIPs guarantee returns?
3. A fund's expense ratio is…
Paper exercise
In the SIP calculator, pick a monthly amount you could realistically invest. Change the assumed return a few times and note how much the result moves. The assumed return is not a promise.
Step 6 of 9
IPOs: how they work and what GMP is
By the end: You know how an IPO application works and why GMP is an unofficial, unreliable indicator.
Read
Try it
Key terms
IPO · GMP (grey market premium) · ASBA · Price band · Basis of allotment
Check yourself
Self-check only — nothing is recorded.
1. In an ASBA / UPI IPO application, your money…
2. GMP (grey market premium) is…
3. Does a high GMP guarantee a listing gain?
Paper exercise
Pick one open or recent IPO on IPO Watch. Write its price band, lot size and key dates, and note whether each figure is official or an unofficial estimate.
Step 7 of 9
F&O: understand the risks first
By the end: You can explain futures, leverage and why derivatives are riskier than they look.
Read
Key terms
Futures · Margin · Leverage · Call option · Put option
Check yourself
Self-check only — nothing is recorded.
1. A futures contract is…
2. Why can derivatives lose money faster than buying shares outright?
3. For someone who BUYS an option, the most they can lose is…
Paper exercise
Read the derivatives risk disclosure on your broker's or an exchange's website and write three risks in your own words. Do not trade derivatives until you can explain margin and expiry.
Step 8 of 9
Read an option chain
By the end: You can find a strike, premium and open interest on an option chain.
Read
Key terms
Option chain · Strike price · Open interest · Expiry · Premium
Check yourself
Self-check only — nothing is recorded.
1. In an option chain, the strike price is…
2. Open interest shows…
3. A call option gives the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to…
Paper exercise
Open the Nifty option chain on NSE's website. Note the strike closest to the current index level and the call and put premiums there. Write the date and time.
Step 9 of 9
Practise before risking money
By the end: You have a written process and a journal, and you have practised it in a simulator.
Read
Try it
Open the paper-trading simulator →
Key terms
Paper trading · Position sizing · Volatility
Check yourself
Self-check only — nothing is recorded.
1. Why practise with paper trading first?
2. A trade journal helps by…
3. Do paper-trading results guarantee real-money results?
Paper exercise
Log five paper trades in the practice journal, each with a planned risk and a one-line reflection.
Finished? Where to go next
- Keep practising in the paper-trading simulator and your practice journal.
- Follow the market in plain language on the daily briefing.
- Optional: structured mentorship is available as a separate paid programme. Everything on this page stays free.
Sources & corrections. Lessons link to Market Dekho articles; for official definitions see NSE, BSE and SEBI. Page last updated 9 October 2026. Found a mistake? Email marketdekho01@gmail.com. This is educational content, not investment advice.