Gold!

Gold is the only real asset there is. All governments are scared of gold, because it takes power away from them and puts it in the hands of the holder. 

Governments can play around with fiat money. They can print more of it as they please, devalue it, or manufacture inflation. Inflation is nothing but a hidden tax that we all pay to redistribute wealth to the haves from the have nots. 

All commodities are good as investments, but gold is the ultimate commodity out there. 

It is a store of value. The gold that your great great seven times removed great  grandmother bought still exists, undiminished, undestroyed. Where is the currency note that existed five hundred years back? 

It is a medium of exchange. In fact it is the best medium of exchange there is. Everyone accepts gold, from the most primitive tribe in the jungle to the highest echelons of Wall Street. 

It is indestructible. Even if your house is destroyed by fire, when you go back to retrieve what is left from the debris, the gold will be intact. 

It packs in very high value in a very low volume. A one kg gold bar which costs almost one crore today ( 90 lakhs to be precise) can fit into your pocket and you won't even notice it. 

It is easily transportable, hideable, and handlable. 

In times of war, the currency becomes worthless, the stock markets shut and your stocks are, I was about to say not even worth the paper they are printed on, but nowadays there is no paper certificate also! The only thing you can carry with you when you run is gold. 

It has never been known to erode in value. It may not give you astronomical returns but it will keep you inflation hedged. 

Gold is also a good hedge against rupee depreciation, since the prices are internationally the same. 

It is time to look at increasing the gold allocation in your portfolio. I would suggest, keeping real estate aside ( that's lumpy), one third each in gold, debt and equity. 

What form to hold gold in? Physical is best. In the form of 24 carat gold biscuits. Having said that, any other form is fine, so long as your government is stable and the markets are holding up. The moment there are signs of great uncertainty in the macro environment, it would be wise to shift etf and other non physical holdings into physical gold. 

But the prices have already gone up, etc etc? That doesn't matter, trying to predict future trends is at best an interesting intellectual pastime, ignore all that. Any time is a good time to buy. 

Having said all that, time to look at silver also, in the immediate future. The silver: gold price ratio is at an all time low. The allocation to silver can be from the same bucket that you have set aside for gold.