Toils And Triumph Of Becoming Her

For Mumbai-based Pooja Dutta, 39, Founder and Managing Partner, Astute Law, life has been about facing a series of challenges and taking them head on. When she went to Pune to study law 15 years ago from a small town in Assam or decided to go to Washington DC for further studies, people criticised her for not being wise enough. Her seven-year stint in the US helped her to learn a lot, but it was difficult to cut a deal as law firms there are usually not open to hiring foreign lawyers. Back in India, she realised whom she knew and where she came from made all the difference. Since she did not have top people in the industry referring her, she realised that her degree from a good university and work experience was of no value. Being a woman made things worse. During an interview at a Delhi-based law firm, they asked her about everything other than work. Then when she started her own law...