In this episode of Sidebar Tales by SCC Times, Advocate Simran Kohli sits down with Menaka Guruswamy, one of India’s leading constitutional lawyers, to explore the journey behind the courtroom. From her years at NLSIU, Oxford and Harvard to arguing landmark constitutional matters, teaching at leading global universities, and becoming a prominent voice in public law, Menaka Guruswamy reflects on the experiences that shaped her career and the realities young lawyers often discover only after entering the profession.
The conversation goes deeper into the realities of legal practice: the role of mentorship, access and networks, the advantages of working with leading seniors, moments of failure in court, and what it takes to make a judge actually listen.
The conversation also moves beyond law into history, literature, philosophy, economics, friendships, sport and the importance of having a life outside the courtroom. For young advocates, law students and anyone interested in constitutional law, this is a conversation about how lawyers are made, how courtroom instinct develops, and how law can meaningfully serve society.
