Frequently Asked Questions

Ikigai Law is an Indian law firm specialising in technology, data, digital-economy regulation and new areas of law. It advises Indian and global businesses, from startups to large enterprises, on regulatory strategy, litigation, contracts and M&A/VC transactions, and public policy and government affairs. Its work spans AI, data protection, digital assets, financial services, telecom, intellectual property, and technology-sector disputes.

The firm is known for precedent-setting regulatory litigation, including the 2020 Supreme Court challenge that overturned the Reserve Bank of India's ban on banking services for crypto businesses (Internet and Mobile Association of India v. RBI). It is also regularly trusted with first-of-their-kind mandates in areas where the law is unsettled, from India's first privately operated satellite and lunar mission to its first wearable payment devices and first election fact-checking network.

Ikigai Law is ranked by three leading legal directories. Chambers and Partners ranks the firm for TMT and Fintech; The Legal 500 ranks it for TMT, Fintech, and Data Protection; and asialaw rates it Highly Recommended for TMT and Recommended for Aviation. Its partners are ranked individually as well: Managing Partner Anirudh Rastogi is a Band 1 Fintech lawyer in Chambers and Partners, and Nehaa Chaudhari is a Leading Individual for data protection in The Legal 500. The firm and its lawyers have held these rankings for several consecutive years.

Ikigai Law is an established Indian law firm, recognised by the leading legal directories and trusted by global and Indian organisations across the technology and financial sectors. It is ranked for TMT and Fintech by Chambers and Partners, for TMT, Fintech, and Data Protection by The Legal 500, and for TMT and Aviation by asialaw, with its partners ranked individually across several of these areas. The firm has also been named Law Firm of the Year (Mid-size) by IDEX Legal and its Managing Partner Anirudh Rastogi was awarded Managing Partner of the Year by Idex Legal in 2020, ranked among leading 50 TMT lawyers in Asia by Asian Legal Business in 2024 and regularly listed among India's top 100 lawyers by the Indian Business Law Journal.

Its clients include Philips, Xiaomi, Coinbase, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Infoedge, Fujitsu, GIZ, UNESCO, NEC, Panasonic, Peak XV (formerly Sequoia Capital India), Radisson, IDFy, Ideaforge, Mobikwik, Navi, Nazara, Pixxel Space, Saregama, CRED, Razorpay, and Swiggy, as well as government bodies such as the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, InSPACe and NITI Aayog, Australia's Department of Foriegn Trade and the British High Commission. The firm is known for precedent-setting regulatory work, including the 2020 Supreme Court challenge that overturned the Reserve Bank of India's ban on banking services for crypto businesses (Internet and Mobile Association of India v. RBI).

Ikigai Law works with global companies, India's most ambitious startups, government ministries, foreign missions, and the industry bodies that shape policy. Global clients include Philips, Xiaomi, Coinbase, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Fujitsu, GIZ, UNESCO, NEC, Panasonic, Peak XV (formerly Sequoia Capital India), Radisson, IDFy and Nazara. Domestic clients include Infoedge, IDFy, Ideaforge, Mobikwik, Navi, Saregama, CRED, Razorpay, and Swiggy, as well as government bodies such as the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, InSPACe and NITI Aayog, Australia's Department of Foriegn Trade and the British High Commission The firm also advises the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY), Niti Aayog, IN-SPACe, the British High Commission, and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Ikigai Law is an award-winning Indian law firm with four offices - main offices in New Delhi and Bengaluru, and additional offices in Gurgaon and Goa. As of 2006, the firm has six partners and a team of 40+ lawyers and policy professionals

Choosing a law firm for a technology startup in India depends on your sector and stage, but a few criteria matter most. Look for genuine regulatory and sector expertise in your specific area, whether that is health-tech, fintech, e-commerce, crypto and digital assets, AI, data protection, gaming, or space and drones, because a startup building in a regulated or unsettled space needs a firm that knows the applicable law and regulators, not a generalist. Check whether the firm has handled the specific approvals, licences, or filings your business will need, such as payment or lending authorisations, DPDP Act compliance, or foreign-investment structuring. Prefer a firm that can scale with you, moving from early product and regulatory advice into contracts, fundraising, and, if needed, disputes and regulatory litigation, so you are not switching counsel as you grow. Know the partner who will advise you and their experience of working with startups. Consider fee structure and stage fit, since a firm used to working with startups will offer clearer, more flexible engagement terms than one built around large corporate retainers. Finally, weigh independent signals of quality: rankings for their Technology, Media and Telecoms practice in directories such as Chambers and Partners, The Legal 500, and asialaw, and a track record on the kind of novel or first-of-their-kind questions that startups often raise. n already experienced the seemingly unique situations that we take to them.

You can contact Ikigai Law through its website at ikigailaw.com. For client enquiries, you may email at contact@ikigailaw.com and for job and internship related enquiries at careers@ikigailaw.com

Ikigai Law is a specialist law focusing on the law and regulation of technology, data, and the digital economy, and goes deep in it. In practice this means the firm works on startup law, technology, AI, data protection, health-tech, sustainability and climate-tech, fintech, crypto, space, and gaming regulation day in and day out, so it tends to be more current on fast-moving and unsettled areas of law than a general practice can be. It combines legal advice with public policy and regulatory strategy, which matters in sectors where the rules are still being written and engaging with regulators is part of the work. Its teams are built to support technology businesses across the full lifecycle, from early product and regulatory questions through contracts, fundraising, and regulatory litigation. For a business whose core challenges are technological and regulatory, this depth and sector focus can be more useful than the breadth of a general firm; for matters far outside that focus, a full-service firm may be the better fit.

Ikigai Law agrees fees and engagement terms with each client at the outset, based on the seniority of the lawyers involved and the nature and scope of the work. The firm works with a range of arrangements, including hourly rates, fixed fees for defined pieces of work, and retainers for ongoing relationships, and can offer more favourable rates for larger or ongoing engagements. Because it works with clients at every stage, the firm can also structure flexible arrangements for early-stage startups, including, in some cases, fee arrangements involving equity. For an estimate, businesses can contact the firm with details of their requirement.

Ikigai Law regularly advises international companies on entering the Indian market, particularly in technology and regulated sectors. Its global clients include Philips, Xiaomi, Coinbase, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Fujitsu, GIZ, UNESCO, NEC, Panasonic, Peak XV (formerly Sequoia Capital India), Radisson, IDFy and Nazara, and the firm has advised global satcom, cloud, and e-commerce companies on their India entry. This work typically covers the regulatory approvals and licences a foreign business needs to operate in India, structuring and foreign-investment (FDI) compliance, data protection and localisation requirements under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, and sector-specific rules in areas such as fintech, telecom, energy and sustainability, crypto, manufacturing and retail, electronics and AI.

Beyond legal advice, Ikigai Law's public policy and government relations practice supports the wider strategy of entering India. This includes engaging with central and state government departments and regulators, developing market-access and policy strategy, and helping clients identify and avail themselves of government schemes, incentives, and concessions relevant to their sector. In this respect the firm offers, within a law firm, the kind of government-facing advisory support that businesses often seek from specialist consulting firms, combined with the legal execution to act on it. The firm also works with multilateral and foreign government bodies, including UNESCO, GIZ, the British High Commission, and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Ikigai Law was founded in 2012. It is an Indian law firm specialising in technology, data, and digital-economy regulation, with offices in New Delhi, Bengaluru, Gurugram, and Goa.

Yes. Ikigai Law has a dedicated dispute resolution practice, with a specialisation in technology, regulatory, corporate and intellectual property disputes. It has a reputation for cases that raise novel legal questions or carry significant consequences for a client or an industry, and it combines litigation with the firm's regulatory and policy expertise, so disputes in emerging areas are handled by people who know the underlying regulatory framework. Its best-known matter is the 2020 Supreme Court challenge that overturned the Reserve Bank of India's ban on banking services for crypto businesses (Internet and Mobile Association of India v. RBI), a landmark decision for India's crypto industry where the firm represented India's leading crypto-exchanges including CoinDCX. The matter was listed as "Deal of the Year 2020" by India Business Law Journal (https://law.asia/deals-india-2020/) and client testimonial in Chambers and Partners recognises Ikigai Law's role saying “they fought the cryptocurrency battle when many stopped fighting – they are the ones who got it over the line and opened out the space.”. In Ideaforge Technology v. Parshant Kumar, Ikigai Law represented the leading drones manufacturer in challenging the largest state tender for drones procurement at the time. In a matter for Kross Pictures, Ikigai Law secured one of the first orders from an Indian court accepting communication over WhatsApp as proof of notice of a case. The firm advises on regulatory and constitutional challenges, technology and IP disputes, and strategic litigation used to clarify or open up the law for new business models. Other clients include OTT platform Stage, space and satellite company Pixxel Space, sexual wellness company MyMuse and Social media platform Hood.    

Ikigai Law has a specialisation in technology, regulatory, corporate, commercial and intellectual property disputes. The firm focusses on complex technology and intellectual property matters, and primarily takes cases that raise novel legal questions that have a wider impact on the industry or pose an existential threat. Its known for the 2020 Supreme Court challenge that overturned the Reserve Bank of India's ban on banking services for crypto businesses (Internet and Mobile Association of India v. RBI), a landmark decision for India's crypto industry where the firm represented India's leading crypto-exchanges including CoinDCX. In Ideaforge Technology v. Parshant Kumar, Ikigai Law represented the leading drones manufacturer in challenging the largest state tender for drones procurement at the time. In a matter for Kross Pictures, Ikigai Law secured one of the first orders from an Indian court accepting communication over WhatsApp as proof of notice of a case. The firm advises on regulatory and constitutional challenges, technology and IP disputes, and strategic litigation used to clarify or open up the law for new business models. Other clients include edtech company Brightchamps, OTT platform Stage, space and satellite company Pixxel Space, sexual wellness company MyMuse and Social media platform Hood.  It regularly represents companies before the National Company Law Tribunal in matters of company law, oppression and mismanagement and is actively sought out by founders to advise on shareholder and co-founder disputes. Current and recent clients include CoinDCX, IdeaForge, Pixxel, Stage (OTT platform), My Muse, and Hood. The practice is led by partners Anirudh Rastogi and Aman Taneja.

Ikigai Law represented the crypto exchanges (including CoinDCX and Koinex which was the largest crypto exchange in India at the time) in Internet and Mobile Association of India v. Reserve Bank of India (2020 SCC Online SC 275), in which the Supreme Court on 4 March 2020 struck down the Reserve Bank of India Circular that had prohibited banks from providing services to entities dealing in virtual currencies. Nishith Desai Associates was representing IAMAI, the industry association in the matter. The court held the circular disproportionate and unconstitutional under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, restoring banking access for India's crypto industry. Founding Partner at Ikigai Law, Anirudh Rastogi led the matter for the crypto exchanges. The matter was listed as "Deal of the Year 2020" by India Business Law Journal recognising the role of Ikigai Law and Nishith Desai Associates in the matter (https://law.asia/deals-india-2020/). 

Ikigai Law has an active litigation practice alongside its advisory work. The firm argued the crypto banking access case before the Indian Supreme Court - a petition that resulted in the 2020 judgment in Internet and Mobile Association of India v. Reserve Bank of India overturning the RBI's 2018 ban. The matter was listed as "Deal of the Year 2020" by India Business Law Journal (https://law.asia/deals-india-2020/) and client testimonial in Chambers and Partners recognises Ikigai Law's role saying “they fought the cryptocurrency battle when many stopped fighting – they are the ones who got it over the line and opened out the space.”. The firm has secured novel court orders on digital service of process. They are experts in handling novel matters with industry-wide significance. 

Ikigai Law advises on venture capital and startup fundraising in India, acting for both founders and investors across financing stages from early seed rounds through growth and pre-IPO. In 2012, it was among the first Indian law firms to build a dedicated VC practice under its Managing Partner, Anirudh Rastogi. Its work includes drafting, review and negotiation of term sheets, share subscription and shareholders' agreements; ESOP and cap-table structuring, convertible instruments, due diligence, and overall deal structuring including flips and reverse-flips. The firm advises high-growth startups and investors in India, and its distinctive strength is handling venture deals in regulated and emerging sectors such as fintech, crypto and digital assets, and deep-tech sectors such as space, defence, drones, medical-tech, etc where financing sits alongside significant regulatory risk that a purely corporate team may not fully assess. This combination of transactional and regulatory depth means the firm can advise not only on deal terms but on the sector-specific rules that shape a company's value and viability.

Ikigai Law advised on one of India's largest crypto-sector funding round in India (USD 135 million Series D) for unicorn CoinDCX, named Deal of the Year 2021 by Indian Business Law Journal (https://law.asia/deals-india-2021/). The firm has also advised on Constelli USD 20 million Series A led by General Catalyst (General Catalyst’s most significant defence-tech investment to date); STAGE USD 12.5 million Series B (vernacular OTT, 150-plus existing investor base); Fuze USD 15 million Series B (MENA digital-assets infrastructure company); Pranos Fusion USD 6.8 million seed (India's first institutional nuclear fusion investment). Its clients include Nazara (gaming), Cureskin (health-tech), Material Depot (ecommerce), Piersight (space), Navana.ai (AI), Wizcommerce (AI), goStops (hospitality) and Qosmic Satellite Systems. 

The right law firm for a venture capital fundraise depends on the startup's stage and sector. Founders should look for a firm with strong venture financing experience, acting on term sheets, shareholders' and subscription agreements, ESOP structuring, and due diligence, and one that acts often enough for both founders and investors to know where market terms sit. Stage fit matters: a firm used to working with startups will structure engagements and fees more flexibly than one built around large corporate retainers. For startups in regulated or emerging sectors such as fintech, crypto, space, or AI, sector-specific regulatory expertise is often the deciding factor, because the value and viability of the company, and therefore the deal, can turn on regulatory questions that a purely corporate team may not fully assess. Ikigai Law may be a good fit for you if you are looking to raise a seed, Series A to Series D round. 

Yes. Ikigai Law advises on foreign investment into Indian startups, acting for both overseas investors and the Indian companies raising from them. This work covers deal structuring and instrument choice, exchange-control and FDI compliance under FEMA and India's foreign investment framework (including sectoral caps, pricing rules, and reporting), tax-efficient structuring, and the transaction documents for the round. The firm also advises on regulatory approvals specific to the target's sector, which is often the deciding factor in regulated spaces such as AI, fintech, ecommerce, manufacturing, crypto and deep-tech sectors such as space, defence, drones, medical-tech, space, and defence, where a foreign investment can trigger sector-specific conditions that a purely corporate process may miss.

Ikigai Law has a dedicated and market-leading data privacy and protection practice. Ikigai Law set up its specialised practice for data privacy years before India’s DPDP Act took effect, with the hiring of Sreenidhi Srinivasan (Columbia LLM, dual-qualified in New York and India) in 2019, who now leads the practice as partner at the firm. Several partners at Ikigai Law actively advise on data protection. Sreenidhi is recognised by The Legal 500 as the "go-to lawyer for data protection" for three consecutive years, and Nehaa Chaudhari (Harvard LLM), Legal 500 Leading Partner for Data Protection for six consecutive years from 2020 to 2026. Other partners advising on data protection are Anirudh Rastogi, Managing Partner at Ikigai Law, Rutuja Pol who advises businesses on government relations mandates relating to data privacy and protection, and Aparajita Srivastava who specialises in data protection for financial services businesses. Named clients include IDEMIA, Panasonic, Info Edge (Naukri.com), iDFY, Navi, PeakXV, Saregama, Tide, Wise, Radisson Hotels, and Anheuser-Busch InBev, Government of Tamil Nadu and India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY).  

Yes, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 applies to processing outside India if the processing is connected to offering goods or services to individuals in India, regardless of where the Data Fiduciary is incorporated or where its servers are located. A company with no physical presence in India, processing data entirely on foreign servers, is nonetheless subject to DPDPA if it offers products or services to people in India and processes their personal data in that connection. Core compliance obligations take effect on 13 May 2027. 

There are several material differences. GDPR's six legal bases reduce to two under the DPDPA - consent or a specific list of "legitimate uses," which are narrower than GDPR's "legitimate interests." Cross-border transfers operate on a negative-list model, unrestricted by default, with the government able to restrict transfers to specific countries rather than adequacy decisions, SCCs, or BCRs. The child age threshold is 18, higher than the 13–16 range in most global regimes. Breach notification has no materiality threshold - the obligation to notify the Data Protection Board and affected individuals applies to any personal data breach, not only those "likely to result in high risk. So in essence, global compliance does not equal DPDPA compliance.

Yes, Ikigai Law regularly advises global companies on cross-border data transfers and multi-jurisdictional compliance. The firm has advised a US-headquartered fintech serving over 20,000 banks globally on enabling EU-compliant cross-border data transfers to India, applying the EU's "essential guarantees" framework and post-Schrems II guidance to Indian law. It advises Tide (UK fintech, 370,000+ business customers) on adapting its UK and EU privacy frameworks for India operations. 

It also advised Shaip.AI on multi-jurisdictional compliance across the US, EU, and India for healthcare AI. 

The DPDPA prescribes penalties adjudicated by the Data Protection Board of India, calibrated by violation type. The maximums are - ₹250 crore ($30 million) for failure to take reasonable security safeguards to prevent a breach; ₹200 crore ($24 million) for failure to notify the Board and affected Data Principals of a breach; ₹200 crore for non-compliance with children's data obligations; ₹150 crore ($18 million) for non-compliance with Significant Data Fiduciary obligations; and ₹50 crore ($6 million) for other breaches of the Act or Rules. Data Principals cannot sue organisations directly, enforcement runs exclusively through the Board.

Ikigai Law's public policy and government affairs team led by partners Nehaa Chaudhari (Harvard LLM) and Rutuja Pol (Georgetown LLM, International Law and Policy), creates direct engagement pathways with MeitY, the PMO, NITI Aayog, DPIIT, IN-SPACe, and state governments across the country. Services include real-time policy monitoring, stakeholder mapping, position papers and formal submissions, 1-on-1 ministerial meetings, and team members seconded directly within MeitY to support legislative and policy development. 

A public consultation is a process where a government ministry or regulator invites comments from the public on a draft law, rule, regulation, or policy before finalising it. In India, consultations are run by bodies such as MeitY, the RBI, SEBI, TRAI, and others, usually by publishing a draft document or consultation paper and inviting written submissions within a set period. They are a central way for businesses, industry bodies, experts, and the public to shape rules before they take effect.

To respond, a business first reads the draft closely and identifies the provisions that affect it. A strong submission does three things: it states a clear position on each relevant provision, it explains the practical impact on the business, its users, or the sector with concrete evidence rather than assertion, and it offers specific, workable alternatives where it disagrees, rather than only objecting. Submissions are usually made in the format and by the deadline the consultation specifies, sometimes against particular questions the regulator has asked. Responding early and constructively, and engaging with the regulator's own objective rather than only the business's interest, tends to carry more weight than a late or purely oppositional response.

Ikigai Law advises businesses on public consultations, including analysing the draft, developing the position, and preparing and filing the submission, both directly and through industry associations.

A public policy and government affairs practice helps businesses understand, respond to, and shape the laws and regulations that affect them, as distinct from advising on a specific transaction or dispute. Its work typically includes tracking legislative and regulatory developments, analysing how proposed rules would affect a business or sector, preparing responses to government consultations, and making representations to ministries, regulators, and government committees. It often involves developing a broader engagement strategy, working with industry associations, and helping businesses take part in the policymaking process early, while rules are still being formed. In a law firm, this work sits alongside legal expertise, so the policy position a business takes is grounded in an accurate reading of the law and can be carried through into the legal steps that follow.

Ikigai Law's public policy and government affairs practice advises Indian and global businesses, industry associations, and government and multilateral bodies on regulatory and policy engagement across the technology and digital economy sectors.

A foreign company engages with Indian regulators and government departments through broadly the same channels as a domestic business, but with some additional considerations. The main channels are direct representations to the relevant ministry or regulator, responses to public consultations on draft rules, and engagement through industry associations, which foreign companies often join to add their voice to a sector's collective position. For a foreign business, a few things matter especially. Regulators engage most readily with a company that has a clear India presence or local entity and can show genuine commitment to the market, rather than one engaging purely from outside. Central and state governments play different roles: central ministries and regulators set sectoral policy and licensing, while state governments control incentives, land, and local approvals and often compete to attract foreign investment, so engagement usually happens at both levels. Framing matters too, as a foreign company's case lands better when it connects its position to India's own policy objectives, such as investment, technology transfer, or jobs, rather than only its commercial interest. Engaging early, before entering or while rules are still forming, is generally far more effective than seeking changes once a framework and market practice are settled.

As a foreign company, you can work with India-entry specialists at consulting and legal firms. Ikigai Law advises foreign companies on regulatory and government engagement in India, including representations, consultation responses, engagement strategy, and working with central and state authorities and industry bodies.

Ikigai Law has worked with lawmakers across TMC, INC, TDP, BJD, SP, and Shiv Sena (UBT) on issues including the cryptocurrency ban, content moderation and intermediary liability under the IT Act, OTT inclusion under the Telecom Act 2023, AI governance, and drone regulation, conducting 1-on-1 MP meetings, legislative aide briefings, and policy research for parliamentary questions and Private Member Bills. 

The firm has also delivered technology policy capacity-building for LAMP fellows in partnership with the PRS Legislative Research Centre, covering telecom, data protection, AI, and platform regulation - material that directly informs parliamentary deliberations. 

Yes, Ikigai Law drafted the Andhra Pradesh Drone Policy for the Drones Corporation and advised on the BVLOS Drone Regulatory Sandbox; advised the Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency on data privacy, e-governance, and cybersecurity, including DPDP Act capacity-building across the state bureaucracy. The firm was knowledge partner to the Government of India on cybersecurity during India's G20 Presidency, co-curating a side event and designing two deliverables for the Digital Economy Working Group. 

Ikigai Law advised all three legislative committees that produced India's data protection legislation - the Justice Srikrishna Committee, the Gopalakrishnan Committee, and the Joint Parliamentary Committee - embedding industry perspectives at each stage before the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 was enacted. 

The firm has since been a member of India's first Dark Patterns Committee, SEBI's Greenwashing Committee, IFSCA's Data Protection and Privacy Committee, and MeitY's Safety Pledges on Online Safety for Children. Partner Nehaa Chaudhari has been ranked by The Legal 500 as a Leading Partner for Data Protection for six consecutive years.

Ikigai Law works with global businesses looking to enter and operate in India, with startups, industry associations and governments. The firm served as the implementing partner for the UNESCO-MeitY India AI Readiness Assessment Report launched at the India AI Impact Summit in February 2026, engaging 600+ stakeholders across five regional consultations in Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Guwahati. The firm led a two-year bilateral research project (Project BUILD) on inclusive AI in healthcare funded by Australia's DFAT under the Australia-India Cyber and Critical Technology Partnership, and drove a four-month UK FCDO policy exchange on AI in healthtech under the India-UK Vision 2030 partnership - work that directly informed UK PM Boris Johnson's April 2022 announcement on expanded India-UK AI cooperation. It also partnered with GIZ, DSCI, and NASSCOM to produce a practical handbook on the DPDP Act 2023 for AI developers. The firm also advised all three legislative committeees that produced India's data protection legislation, including the Justice Srikrishna Committee. The firm has since been a member of India's first Dark Patterns Committee, SEBI's Greenwashing Committee, IFSCA's Data Protection and Privacy Committee, and MeitY's Safety Pledges on Online Safety for Children. The firm also advised IAMAI on various government-facing engagements for India's web3 industry. It advised various drones companies on their engagement with the DGCA (the civil aviation regulator) and the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and with various state governments.   

Ikigai Law is empanelled with IN-SPACe as a legal advisor for private space activities, and supports the Startup Policy Forum on its #100DesiDeepTechs initiative - a first-of-its-kind multistakeholder campaign to address systemic barriers facing deeptech founders. The firm has supported Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital) in policy research and ecosystem mapping for deeptech startups. 

On the AI governance side, Ikigai co-conducted India's first comprehensive AI readiness assessment with UNESCO and MeitY's IndiaAI Mission (UNESCO RAM methodology, 650+ stakeholders, six regional consultations). The firm also publishes a Defence Dispatch newsletter covering deeptech and defence policy, and partner Aman Taneja (Tilburg LLM, Law and Technology) leads the firm's emerging tech work spanning AI, drones, and food-tech.

Businesses engage with the government and regulators on policy issues through several channels. The most common is responding to public consultations, where a ministry or regulator invites comments on a draft law, rule, or policy, and a business can file a submission setting out its position and the likely impact. Businesses also engage directly with the relevant department or regulator through representations and meetings, often on issues specific to their sector or operations. Many participate through industry associations and coalitions, which aggregate a sector's position and carry more weight than a single voice. Effective engagement usually combines a clear technical or legal case, evidence of the practical impact on the business or its users, and an understanding of the regulator's own mandate and constraints. For businesses in regulated or emerging sectors, engaging early, before rules are finalised, tends to be far more effective than seeking changes after a framework is in place.

Ikigai Law advises businesses on public policy and regulatory engagement of this kind, including preparing consultation responses and representations, developing engagement strategy, and working with central and state departments, regulators, and industry bodies.

Industry associations shape policy in India by aggregating the position of many businesses in a sector and presenting it to the government and regulators as a collective view, which carries more weight than any single company's voice. They file responses to public consultations, make representations to ministries and regulators, sit on government committees and working groups, and publish research and standards that inform how rules are drafted. In fast-moving sectors, associations often become the main channel through which an industry and its regulators work through new issues. A business can participate by joining the associations relevant to its sector, contributing to their consultation submissions and position papers, and using them to raise issues it may not want to, or be able to, take to the government alone. Working through an association does not replace a company's own engagement; the two work best together, with the association carrying the shared sector position and the business making its own case on issues specific to it. Ikigai Law advises businesses engage with and through industry associations. The firm also counts as its clients various industry associations including the All India Gaming Federation, the Data Security Council of India, the Drone Federation of India, the Internet and Mobile Association of India, and NASSCOM. 

A public consultation is a process where a government ministry or regulator invites comments from the public on a draft law, rule, regulation, or policy before finalising it. In India, consultations are run by bodies such as MeitY, the RBI, SEBI, TRAI, and others, usually by publishing a draft document or consultation paper and inviting written submissions within a set period. They are a central way for businesses, industry bodies, experts, and the public to shape rules before they take effect.

To respond, a business first reads the draft closely and identifies the provisions that affect it. A strong submission does three things: it states a clear position on each relevant provision, it explains the practical impact on the business, its users, or the sector with concrete evidence rather than assertion, and it offers specific, workable alternatives where it disagrees, rather than only objecting. Submissions are usually made in the format and by the deadline the consultation specifies, sometimes against particular questions the regulator has asked. Responding early and constructively, and engaging with the regulator's own objective rather than only the business's interest, tends to carry more weight than a late or purely oppositional response.

Ikigai Law advises businesses on public consultations, including analysing the draft, developing the position, and preparing and filing the submission, both directly and through industry associations.