Celebrity lawyer Priyanka Khimani’s journey from Mumbai chawl to Nariman Point office

Celebrity lawyer Priyanka Khimani is the powerhouse behind Khimani & Associates (Image: priyankakhimani/Instagram)

Priyanka Khimani says her never-give-up attitude helped her rise from humble beginnings. Growing up in a chawl in Mumbai, Khimani credits her early lack of privilege for paving the way to her success. Today, she is one of the top entertainment lawyers in the country, having represented the likes of Anurag Kashyap and Badshah.

But the journey from a small chawl in Mahim to a glitzy office in Nariman Point has not been easy for Priyanka Khimani, the powerhouse behind Khimani & Associates. In an interview with Humans of Bombay, she opened up about her early life and career trajectory.

“Growing up in a chawl, I couldn’t dream big. Mom and Dad fought constantly due to lack of money,” she told Humans of Bombay. Although she discovered her love for writing at 15, Khimani’s mother wanted her to study science. “So I went from topping in school to barely getting by in college,” she said.

“One day, we had a writing workshop in our college. That one session opened doors to the world of entertainment,” Khimani recalled. Her mentor Kiran helped her write several shows, but the death of Khimani’s father put the family in further financial difficulties.

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Through college, she took up every TV writing gig she got to support her family of four women. “But after graduation, I had to make a decision. I joined law and I’d study while on set, writing,” said Khimani.

But life had something bigger in store for Khimani. “Kiran got in touch again. She needed a lawyer for a singer. One word and I recognised her voice – Lata Mangeshkar,” she recalled.

And so, at the age of 25, Priyanka Khimani landed her first client, Bollywood legend Lata Mangeshkar. She was soon representing other celebrities. “For the 1st time, I had financial security. So, in 2014, I started Khimani & Associates,” she told Humans of Bombay.

A decade later, Khimani counts some of the biggest names in Bollywood as her clients, including AR Rahman, Sushmita Sen, Vir Das, Badshah and more.

Today, she no longer stays in the chawl where she was raised, but the life experiences she gathered there have helped her. “My never-give-up attitude brought me from a chawl in Mahim to being called ‘the face of entertainment law.’ This is not the end; this is just the beginning!” says Khimani. “And I’ll keep soaring... even when the odds are stacked against me."