It's been a forgetful week for Indian investors as equity markets fell dramatically, erasing the gains of the last four weeks. The benchmark Sensex witnessed a sharp decline, marking a loss of nearly 5% for the week.Despite the overall weak sentiments, a few smallcaps stood out, 22 of them precisely, delivering double-digit returns to investors.Fairchem Organics was the top gainer in the smallcap pack with nearly 49% returns, followed by Tanfac Industries (28%), Vakrangee (18%), and Five-Star Business (18%).About 20 stocks, including Chaman Lal Steia, 63 Moons Technologies, Cosmo First, Hampton Sky, Yasho Industries, Newgen Software, have offered returns between 10-20% during the week.Also Read: D-Street carnage extends to 5th day as Sensex crashes 1,176 pts, Nifty drops below 23,600; investors lose Rs 10.15 lakh croreIn the midcap segment, only General Insurance Corp rose in double digits, gaining about 17%. Oberoi Realty and The new India Assurance followed closely, but were restricted to single-digit gains.Among the Sensex pack, forget the double-digit returns, none of the 30 stocks ended the week in the green. Sun Pharma was the least affected by this downturn at -0.29%, while Tata Motors nearly lost over 8%.During the week, the US Fed signalled a slower pace of interest rate cuts next year as inflation remains elevated, leading to a widespread sell-off across global markets. This in turn has spooked sentiments even on the domestic front, causing a panic-led selloff in Indian equitiesWhat should investors do?Even though weak global cues initiated the downward move in the week, analysts say the follow-up sell-off showcased the bears' eagerness to colour the market red ahead of Christmas.“The advance declines have strongly turned to favour bears, and it is advisable to avoid trying to catch the falling knife with anticipation of bottom-fishing. Considering the recent developments, it is advised to approach markets with proper risk management and refrain from taking complacent bets for the time being," said Osho Krishnan, Sr. Analyst, Technical & Derivatives of - Angel One.Technically, the index is hovering near a crucial support level at 23,500, aligning with an upward-sloping trendline. A decisive breach below this support could trigger intensified selling pressure, according to Dhupesh Dhameja, Derivatives Analyst, SAMCO Securities.“Conversely, any recovery attempt is likely to face resistance around 24,000, a level marked by an unfilled gap that reflects weak buying interest at higher levels. The RSI on the daily chart has slipped below 40, signalling waning buying momentum," Dhameja adds.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)