I'd like it to be a complete surprise. On the day I turn 40, I'll go into work early, send a bulk mail with something as cool as Chatwin's, "Off to Patagonia", maybe something nastier made-to-order for the boss who steals all my ideas and hogs all the credit, stop at the city's only excuse for a park, take off my shoes and let the grass tickle the soles of my feet, and return home and wait for the significant other. I will do nothing with my time other than read, write (if it isn't too much work), drink in moderation, exercise, again in moderation, and practice vegetating. You see, I plan to retire at 40.

I can do it; time is on my side-I am just 31 now, don't have any debts against my name or any outstanding credit card bills, or parents who need to be supported. I have it all worked out in my head: the amount I'll need to maintain my altered lifestyle. If I am not going to hold down a job, I certainly won't have to spend a few lakhs of rupees every year on being well-clad and well-shod. A few 501s will do. As will some regulation sneakers. And I am told both can be acquired at sales.

I won't need a driver. If I am going to be at home, I might as well drop the kids at school, pick them up, drop them at the tennis club, pick them up, drive them to their music lesson.... The cook can go too. I have always liked to cook and I am willing to bet my last salary cheque that this will bring down the grocery and vegetable bill.

There's still the kids' education, medical expenses, planned and unplanned, vacations, clothes and toys for the kids, loose change (if you could call it that) for books and music-I don't know if I can keep that Amazon.com habit going after 40-and utility bills, but if I invest wisely, and I plan to, these should be a breeze. Patagonia, here I come.

THE FAMILY MAN Exxon Mobil Exec, Vineet Thacker dreams of an idyllic (early) retirement. AGE: 31 INCOME: Rs 800,000 p.a. EXPERIENCE: 9 years

Thacker is as organisation man as they come. He insists that we run a caveat that his views on early retirement and how he plans to achieve it are his own and not Exxon Mobil's. Done. Thacker will probably continue working after 40, despite the fact that he ends up working most Sundays, and doesn't have time to read and meet up with friends. But the man admits that over the "next 10-to-12 years," he will "invest money in such a way as to achieve my goal of an early retirement". That'll mean a change in his essentially debt-oriented portfolio. Part of Thacker's investment will go into a small house ("with a nice garden") in a beach-resort on the limits of Mumbai, Alibaug. Part of the house will be rented out to weekend vacationers and serve as "an alternate source of income". That's smart.

THE ACTIVE RETIREE It is still in the future, but insurance exec Suresh Subramanium has entrepreneurial visions post retirement. AGE: 33 INCOME: Rs 10,00,000+ p.a. EXPERIENCE: 13 years

The overseas model: Zalkikar's approach is not for everybody Subramanium's is the ideal retire-early portfolio. They have always had a 60 per cent slant towards equity and he plans to keep that ratio intact for the next 10 years. Not for Subramanium the safe mutual fund route-he invests directly in equities, a fallout of his interest in equity research and the stockmarket. While he is clear that he will retire early, Subramanium is still unsure of what he will do: he could consult for a business process outsourcing firm, extend his interest in dramatics into a career in event management, or leverage his interest in training optimally. One thing is certain: this man won't vegetate.

PART-TIME PLANNER Software pro Makrand Zalkikar hopes to do his own thing-six months of the year-after retiring at 40. AGE: 32 INCOME: Rs 750,000 p.a. EXPERIENCE: 9 years

The equity route: Subramanium is putting his knowledge of equities to good use It wouldn't do to emulate zalkikar. his portfolio is skewed towards debt and insurance, and although he plans to invest in some real estate, none of these can really provide him the kind of nest egg he wants. What will, is the fact that the man will almost certainly spend between two and three years overseas. Zalkikar plans to put aside whatever he saves (in dollars) and use the money to start a "small travel business" when he turns 40. The avid para-glider and bungee jumper wants to get into the adventure tours business. "Ideally, this should be season and run for just six months of the year," he says. Like we said, it wouldn't do to emulate him.

Let Me Tell You How

First off, get your time horizon right. According to the Indian Government's Old Age Social & Income Security (Oasis, I'm told is how the babus refer to this) report, a person who is 40 can hope to live another 37 years. The report further suggests that by 2010, this figure will be 45 years.

Me, I think I am healthy enough to see 90. I don't smoke, apart from the occasional cigar, and that is an indulgence I hope to retain. Liquor is restricted to the occasional glass of single malt or wine. And I exercise regularly. That means I can look forward to a long and indolent retirement. It also means I can't expect my provident fund to last very long.

Fortunately, a few years after I started work-those were the days of my dissolute youth-I read a magazine article (not half as well-written or knowledgeable as the one you are reading) that quoted a man called Rajiv Bajaj who headed a company called Bajaj Capital (I am told he still does). The only Bajajs I knew of were in the motor trade, but this man obviously knew his investments. ''A person who aspires to retire early should start saving the day he gets his first salary,'' he was quoted as saying. I hadn't done that, but started soon after reading the article. Six years on, I am better off for that: money, in case you didn't know, begets money. There were (and are) enough schemes on offer: recurring deposits, systemic investment plans, and special insurance schemes targeting early retirees where one pays a high premium while working and no premium (or a very small one) post retirement.

I am not what you could call a disciplined or organised person, but I forced myself to invest regularly. It was painful at times-I went four years without replacing my television, for instance, World Cup to World Cup-but I prevailed. I told myself that a person who saves regularly would, in the long term, save more than someone who opted for the big bang saving. I also told myself that I was delaying my gratification. When I was 41 and watching Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on DVD, my erstwhile colleagues would be rushing to get into work.

Temptation was never far off. Every time an investment matured there he was, Old Nick in the flesh, standing behind my shoulder and whispering sweet somethings into my ear: Bose Lifestyle, Philips Plasma, or Royal Carribean Cruise. Again, I prevailed. I stayed invested in schemes that offered recurring benefits; mutual funds, for instance do. And I took the money out of those that didn't and reinvested it. I am sure I will be tempted again, and I am equally sure I will resist. As we of the Cosa Nostra tell ourselves, Bambino, gratification is a dish best eaten cold.

...And Let Me Tell You What

I won't take too much of your time now-I have to get back to work. There's one more piece of wisdom I'd like to share from that article I read long ago. This one too comes courtesy Bajaj. ''If you want to retire at 40,'' I remember him as having said, ''your investing strategy should be built around capital growth.'' Mine is. Almost half my portfolio is in equity, some direct, and the rest (actually, most of it) through mutual funds. After 40, I will have the time to study and pick stocks myself. Equity may hold some risks, but it is the one sure way to meet growing expenses, and beat inflation. Interested?