New Delhi, Nov. 24 -- Imagine you run a small business. Like most small businesses, it is a strenuously uphill climb. Finding customers requires back-breaking effort, raw material prices often shoot up unexpectedly, new competitors enter the market regularly, and every once in a while, the local policeman or municipal official drops by to enquire about your good health. You finally get to experience first-hand the gut-wrenching gap between rosy Excel sheet projections and the grim realities of running a business in India. Anyways, hope is the most potent aphrodisiac and you soldier on.

One fine day, some investors land up at your doorstep and gush about the good things they are hearing about the market, the runway for growth, the buzz ar...