Women today are flourishing in diverse fields of specialty as leaders and making way for the future aspirants to shine brighter in the upcoming days. Anushree Rauta is one among those few women who is successfully working as a partner at ANM Global in the IP, Media & Entertainment domain and contributing towards knowledge sharing initiatives through her blog IPRMENTLAW. Here is her exclusive interview.

Give us a brief overview of ANM global. What are the major features of your expertise as a media & entertainment lawyer?

ANM Global is a 2009 established, full-service commercial law firm with offices in Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru, and Chennai. We advise and represent several Fortune 500 global companies and business houses in India operating across diverse industries such as Media and Entertainment, Information Technology, IPR, Sports & Gaming, Real Estate and Infrastructure, corporate M&E among others. Our Mumbai office has its core expertise in media & entertainment in addition to litigation, IPR, and general corporate commercial practice. We offer transactional, advisory, and litigation support to a wide range of our media clientele which comprises some of the leading studios, production houses, music labels, OTT platforms, broadcasters, and celebrities in the industry.

My expertise lies in drafting and negotiating agreements, providing transactional, advisory, and litigation support and end-to-end solutions to our clients. Having extensive litigation and transactional experience for over a decade enables me to strategize ingenious solutions for our media clients. My work also includes implementing foresight to provide solutions to them related to nascent as well as developed laws, mitigate their risks right from inception, be it in transactions or while providing advisory for matters of varying complexity. I have successfully represented several clients in complex copyright, trademark, and content-related litigations.

Take us through your educational and professional background. How did the journey lead you towards the realm of media & entertainment law?

I was born and brought up in Pune, and my mother has always been my role model. She is a well-known social and environmental activist and convenor of the Save Ganga Movement. So, I joined ILS Law College in Pune, which was ranked #1 law school in India in 2005, with the thought of becoming an environmental lawyer. However, I found Intellectual Property Law to be fascinating. I explored the topic not just through optional courses in college but also through additional diplomas from NLSIU and WIPO. In 2010, I joined Naik Naik& Co through campus placements and worked with them for around eight years, and grew as a media and entertainment lawyer. In August 2018, I decided it

was time to take up new challenges and joined ANM Global as a partner to head its media and entertainment practice. ANM Global provided me the opportunity to build and scale up the media practice. I am thankful to my managing partner, Mr. NidhishMehrotra for his trust and support, and together we have come a long way in the last three years.

In January 2018, I started my blog IPRMENTLAW. com. There was, at the time, no platform focused on the niche sector of media and entertainment laws that allowed students, young professionals, and experts to collaborate or come together. IPRMENTLAW is a knowledge- sharing, non-profit open access forum. Within a year of its launch, it became one of the top entertainment law blogs in India and continues to provide regular updates and perspectives on significant developments taking place in the media and entertainment industry.

Tell us about the various practice areas that you specialize in. What are the various roles and responsibilities you handle currently at ANM global?

I specialize in copyright, trademark, media, and entertainment laws. As the head of the media and entertainment practice, my responsibilities involve leading and mentoring the media team, expanding the practice, and providing innovative legal and business solutions as well as end-to-end client support. At ANM Global, we provide absolute visibility to each team member in respect of their contribution to the firm and encourage all our team members to take full ownership and responsibility of their work, be it as a fresher or someone with experience, thereby providing a conducive work atmosphere.

“I specialize in copyright, trademark, media, and entertainment laws”

How has your professional growth journey been so far? What have been some of the most impactful milestones achieved by you over the years?

It has been a roller coaster ride with a constant adrenaline rush. Each day has been a new learning experience. With the support of my managing partner, Mr. Nidhish Mehrotra, and our entire media team who have consistently performed to promote the growth of the practice, ANM Global is now recognized as one of the leading media and entertainment law firms in India. The firm has been recognized by ALB Asia Who’s Who in 2019, and most recently by Asia Law Profiles as one of the “Recommended law firms for Media & Entertainment Practice” in their 2021 edition. I was recognized in the inaugural list of India’s Top TMT/ Fintech Lawyers, 2021 prepared by the Asian Legal Business magazine as well as Powerful Women in IP India 2021 by the World Intellectual Property Forum. I recently authored a handbook ‘Copyright 101’ for content creators and owners which was launched in collaboration with FICCI and Creative First. I have been a part of some pathbreaking litigations in the M&E space including the landmark IPAB radio royalty statutory licensing decision, OTT regulation matters, the Gunjan Saxena litigation, Plex vs Zee Plex TM dispute, Defamation of class of lawyers’ landmark case for the web-series Hasmukh, to name a few.

What is the roadmap ahead for your professional journey? Are you looking to focus on any specific areas or niche capabilities in the days to come?

IP, Media, and Entertainment laws have been my focus and I intend to expand my horizon in the same. We are expanding our practice into other practice areas which complement media and entertainment laws such as gaming, sports, AI, and Blockchain.

What would your advice be to young women who aspire to foray into the field of law?

Don’t let your gender determine your destiny. Focus, hard work and determination pave the way to success. Never stop learning.

Anushree Rauta, Partner, ANM Global

A familiar name in the media and entertainment sector, Anushree is considered to be the go to person for several top Media and Entertainment companies. She has been recognized in the inaugural list of India’s Top TMT/ Fintech Lawyers, 2021 prepared by the Asian Legal Business magazine, Powerful Women in IP India 2021 by the World Intellectual Property Forum as well as a ‘Notable Practitioner’ in the Asia Law Profile 2022 Edition.