By Dr. Beheruz N. Sethna, PGP 1973

Best Friend: Kirit Raval, PGP 1973

Kirit with Anita, and Shaun (Beheruz’s children), 1983.

How did you two meet? What was your first impression?

We were both students in the entering class of 1971. Kirit was one of the youngest students in our class because he came from a 3-year B.Com program, and I was one of the older students because I came after a 7-year bachelor’s degree (2 years of Inter Science followed by 5 years of IIT electrical engineering – IIT BTech was a 5-year program at that time). We were on the same floor of the same dorm, D-10, so we quickly became friends.

Tell us about some of your fondest memories with each other. 

Kirit was not around in the dorm much. We assumed that he went home each afternoon because his parents lived in Ahmedabad, close to IIMA. So, it took us some time to become close friends. I was part of a group of guys and girls that used to hang out together, and Kirit was referred to as being on the periphery of that group.

Kirit was an amazing person, and we literally didn’t know one-half of it when he was in class with us. Kirit appeared to be a modestly interested student at IIMA, but what we didn’t know is that he was doing two degrees at one time: He was doing a law degree while he was in our class – an amazing guy! He brought me into the picture very late in his PGP program but I was sworn to secrecy.

The only way everyone ultimately found out about it was because he topped the class and got a gold medal in his law degree, and his picture was published in the newspaper!

By that time, it was too late for anyone to do anything about it. And why would anyone want to mess with an academic Gold Medalist who proved that he could handle two demanding programs at the same time?

The story does not end here. Kirit rose to be Solicitor General of India by the time he was 50. A truly brilliant lawyer. Regrettably, he passed away from leukaemia at a very young age. While the law profession misses his brilliance, I miss him as a friend. Kalpana (his wife) and Nikunt (his older son) are doing very well in the legal profession, and Jay (his younger son)  has excelled in the corporate world. Kirit received the Distinguished Alumnus of IIMA award, a very well-deserved honour on the 50th Golden Jubilee Celebrations at the institute. I, too, received this honor at the same time. Kirit got that award posthumously because he had already passed away at that time.

Kirit Raval as a student at IIMA.

How do you keep in touch? What are your favourite activities to do together?

I was in touch with him as he was battling leukaemia, and was deeply saddened when he succumbed to that terrible affliction. Madhavi and I have kept in touch with Kalpana and, occasionally, with Nikunt and Jay as well.

Kirit Raval in later life (last one).