On the first episode of the Bombay Bar Association Podcast, our guest is Justice Sujata Manohar. She was the first woman Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court and the Kerala High Court and only the second woman ever to be appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court of India.

Justice Manohar takes us through the challenges she faced as one of the few women lawyers practising in the Bombay High Court when she joined the Bar in 1958; the pressure of dealing with matters like riot commissions, reservations and human right abuses; and how the Vishaka Guidelines came to be which are still relied upon today for dealing with harassment in the workplace.

Introduction: 00:00 – 00:55
Witnessing the Indian flag being hoisted in the Bombay High Court for the first time: 00:56 – 01:59
Why did Mrs. Manohar pursue law?: 02:00 02:45
Studying law at Oxford University: 02:46 03:51
What advice did her father Justice K.T. Desai gave her when she started her practice?: 03:52 06:09
First brief and experience as a woman lawyer in Bombay High Court: 06:10 – 07:58
10 Downing Street in the Bar Association Room lobby: 07:59 08:42
Balancing working as a lawyer and family: 08:43 – 10:40
Probono work in women’s issues: 10:41 – 12:12
On appointment as a judge of the Bombay High Court: 12:13 – 14:04
Srikrishna Commission: 14:05 – 16:01
Experience as the Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court: 16:02 – 16:39
Preeti Srivastava vs. State of M.P.: 16:40 – 18:12
Vishakha guidelines: 18:13 – 20:39
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC): 20:40 – 25:44
Mental strength required to be a judge: 25:45 – 27:10
Supreme Court tenure: 27:11 – 28:01
Advice to young lawyers: 28:02 – 29:23

This video is an intellectual property belonging to the Bombay Bar Association. Any unauthorised usage of this video/script in any format is prohibited and will be subject to prosecution.

CREDITS:
Guest: Justice Sujata Manohar
Host: Sr. Adv. Nitin Thakker
Editorial Guidance: Nitin Thakker
Special Thanks: Vishal Kanade & Firoz Bharucha
Concept & Creative Producer: Aditya Bapat

This is a Maed in India production.
Head of Production: Shaun Fanthome
Creative Head: Mae Mariyam Thomas
Sound Designer & Mixing Engineer: Kartik Kulkarni
Sound Editors : Lakshman Parsuram & Ishaan Devasthali
Directed and edited by: Jishnu Guha
Camera Assistant: Ujjwal Lo
Project Coordinator: Natasha Vakil
Research: Nirmal Bhansali
Assistant Producer: Meghna Gulati & Ruchi Sawardekar
Studio: Island City Studios