In Conversation with Hetal Thakkar, Partner, Khaitan & Co

Hetal, would you please walk us through your early years of education and the decision to become a lawyer?

I come from a long line of lawyers, spanning four generations, so you could say that it runs in the family. Growing up seeing my father and grandfather work, always intrigued me and this naturally steered me towards law as a career. Initially I was leaning towards litigation or role in judiciary. It wasn’t until I interned at Crawford Bayley & Co, Mumbai with Mr. C. M Maniar during my college days at Government Law College that I discovered other aspects of legal profession. Subsequently, when I worked with Mr. Sanjay Asher at Crawford Bayley & Co, I found myself fascinated by corporate law, negotiations and the realm of M&A.

Tell us about your roles and responsibilities at work, what does a day in your shoes look like as Partner, Khaitan & Co

I am part of the Corporate Commercial practice at Khaitan & Co, Mumbai office and my general focus area is M&A, transaction advisory and commercial contracts. I’m an early bird, so I kick off my typical day very early by checking and responding to work emails before diving into the latest news with a good old-fashioned newspaper. From there, it’s a whirlwind of continuous client calls, negotiations, and drafting. As a corporate M&A lawyer, a big part of my job is finding solutions and striking a balance to help close deals, which involves quick thinking and ongoing discussions. At Khaitan, we prioritise team building and learning, so I spend some part of the day teaching drafting or deal structures to junior colleagues and participating in team activities.  

Can you tell us about notable deal you have been involved in during your career?

Without getting into minutiae and names let me share two deals that really shaped my career.

The first one was a strategic divestment deal for the government. It gave me a unique insight on how acquisitions and sales are conducted by the government, which is completely different from deals between private parties. Personally, the learning curve was steep and incredibly rewarding. The second deal that stands out to me is one deal in retail luxury space. At first, I was simply drawn to it because of my interest in the brand involved. But as the deal progressed, I found a perfect combination of my personal interest and my professional work.  That’s when I shifted focus on acquisitions and joint ventures in the retail space.

What is your success mantra and what advice would you give to others wanting to tread a similar path?

Do not take either praise or criticism too seriously and continue to remain focussed on the goal.
 

It is a fact that there are external factors (which have nothing to do with personal shortcomings) such as your timing, whether the deals you work on commercially close, opportunities that are provided to you vis a vis opportunities provided to others etc. which play a significant role in shaping your journey. When on the wrong side of these, it is easy to get discouraged, however, one should look at these as obstacles that one must navigate to get to the finishing line and channel their frustration into determination and drive. It may not be a linear path always, but as they say, you can’t keep a good (wo)man down.  Most importantly, do not let praise inflate your ego or lead to complacency and similarly do not let criticism demoralise you or erode your self-confidence. By maintaining a healthy detachment from both, one can navigate challenges with a clear mind and strong sense of self-worth.