The Right Boss Changes Everything; especially for women

How trust, empathy, and great leadership shaped my career

We talk a lot about the obstacles women face at work.

The biological clock.

The invisible load at home.

The guilt.

The constant negotiation between ambition and responsibility.

All of that is real.

But there is another truth we don’t talk about enough:

The right boss or mentor can change the entire trajectory of a woman’s career.

In my case, it changed everything.

I didn’t start out confident or polished or strategic. I started out as a wide-eyed, slightly clueless girl who joined as an intern - and stayed on because someone (my first boss) saw something, even when I couldn’t.

My first boss, Shuva Mandal, Managing Partner at one of India’s oldest and largest law firms, gave opportunity after opportunity to that girl. He coached me. He put up with my immaturity. He ignored the fact that I was the youngest in the room and focused instead on how ready and eager I was to work.

He rewarded merit, not seniority. He involved me in varied, demanding work that gave me the strongest foundation, and eventually, the confidence and ability to choose where I wanted to specialise.

What he taught me, without ever saying it aloud, was this: When someone trusts you early, you learn to rise fast.

Then came Nishith Desai - a legend in every sense of the word.

If there is one place where merit truly wins over everything else - gender, age, seniority, influence - it is his firm. And I experienced that first-hand.

One moment stays with me forever.

My first solo presentation at a conference.

That morning, I told him I was scared.

I walked on stage outwardly confident, inwardly a trembling mess - and then I was pleasantly surprised to see him walk in to the room and sit down, raising a quiet, reassuring hand that said: I’m here. Don’t worry.

I did great.

Who wouldn’t, with that kind of belief behind them?

He made the trek from Nariman Point to BKC just to be there. If you know him, you know what that trek means.

That was just one example, but it captures a larger truth: unwavering support has a way of becoming courage.

Then came my pregnancies.

Like many women, I was terrified to speak up. Terrified of slowing down. Terrified because I had heard too many not-so-kind stories from other women.

When I told him, his reaction was simple: Congratulations.

Nothing changed. No shift in belief. No unspoken assumptions.

Just trust.

And when someone trusts you like that, you deliver.

My career didn’t pause. I didn’t have to choose between ambition and motherhood. I didn’t have to carry guilt for either.

Both pregnancies passed without my professional identity shrinking - something I know is still far too rare.

Today, I find myself in a completely different phase of life and work - and once again, the presence of the right leader has made all the difference.

Ash Lilani, the OG of venture capital and venture debt in India - whatever I say won’t be enough.

At Saama Capital, I don’t just feel supported, I feel belonged.

I feel pushed, stretched, and trusted.

Every time I have felt restless or unsure, one conversation with him has opened up new possibilities. Without his belief, I would never have been able to make the transition from law to investing.

But it goes beyond career moves.

The Saama family stood by me through two of the hardest chapters of my life - my divorce (more than a decade back, when I had just started my role at Saama), and then my father’s illness and passing. Ash gave me space to grieve, without judgement or pressure. He stood by me like a rock when I was barely holding myself together.

That kind of leadership doesn’t just build careers. It builds people.

So when we talk about women at work, I want to say this clearly:

Yes, women are resilient. Yes, we juggle more and adapt constantly.

But the presence of a boss or mentor who leads with trust, fairness, and empathy can make the difference between merely coping and truly growing; between staying small and becoming who you are meant to be.

I am where I am today not just because I worked hard - but because a few exceptional leaders chose to lead well.

And that, I will always be grateful for.

PS: This is, in many ways, an acknowledgment - not just of individuals, but of a kind of leadership that backs people early, trusts them fully, and stands by them when life gets complicated. I hope more women (and others irrespective of gender) get to experience it, and more leaders choose to practise it.