Motilal Oswal Nifty India Defence Index Fund Direct Plan Growth

Motilal Oswal Nifty India Defence Index Fund Direct Plan Growth ranks among the stronger performers in the Index Funds category, backed by a 4-star rating. TopFund's composite Health Score, which weighs rating, 3-year CAGR, expense ratio and fund size, puts it at 84/100.

Cost: At 0.57%, the expense ratio runs 36% above the Index Funds category average of 0.42%. That gap is worth weighing against the fund's actual performance versus cheaper peers before committing to a long SIP.

Risk-adjusted performance: Over the trailing 1-year period, the fund shows a moderate Sharpe ratio of 0.76 — decent risk-adjusted performance, without being exceptional. Separately, with 24.96% annualised volatility, this is among the more turbulent funds in its space — expect sharp swings in both directions.

Who should invest: This fund is best suited to cost-conscious investors happy to simply match the market rather than try to beat it. The High risk rating means near-term volatility should be expected — this isn't a fund to check daily.