As Mumbai's markets prepared to open on a cautious Monday, India found itself caught between the slow burn of geopolitical fire and the cold arithmetic of capital flight. Elevated crude oil prices — eased slightly but still hostage to Middle East tensions — threatened to stoke inflation and tighten the cost of living and credit alike. Meanwhile, foreign investors, having withdrawn over $26 billion from Indian equities this year, offered only a whisper of renewed confidence on Friday. In such moments, markets become mirrors of a deeper human uncertainty: how much instability can an economy abso