An Inspired Chat with Priyank Thakkar

Priyank Thakkar shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Hi Priyank, thank you so much for joining us today. We’re thrilled to learn more about your journey, values and what you are currently working on. Let’s start with an ice breaker: Would YOU hire you? Why or why not?
Oh, absolutely not. I would never hire someone like me, and here’s why: I’m a perfectionist who becomes a delegator. I’d hire myself, teach myself everything I know, and then that “me” would kick the original me out of my own business in no time. So no, I can’t hire myself. My company wouldn’t survive the internal coup. :p

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Priyank Thakkar. I started in Hollywood, NYFA in LA, acting, producing, pretending to enjoy kale smoothies. Won many awards too, which are now mostly collecting dust. Then COVID said, “plot twist,” and I found myself back in India.

I tried finance, trading, and family business—basically, I speed-ran through LinkedIn’s career options. But the one thing that stuck through all of it? My voice. Turns out, I could walk away from Wall Street and Bollywood, but not from speaking with impact.

So now, I coach people on how to own the room when they speak. Not grammar lessons. Not “repeat after me.” I’m talking presence, clarity, power. The stuff that makes people actually shut up and listen.

In short: I’ve lived a few lives, failed in some, thrived in others. But this, helping people transform the way they sound and feel when they speak. Honestly, this feels like the best role I’ve landed yet.

Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
Honestly, the answer is my wife. Back then, she was just my best friend. Ten years ago, when most people saw me as the ego-driven, “funny but careless” guy, she somehow caught a glimpse of the version of me that was genuine, thoughtful, even a little mature. Basically, a version I didn’t even know existed.

Fast forward a decade, she’s my wife, and that side she saw is now the engine that runs my life. She spotted it before I could, and she’s the reason I lean into it every day.

So yeah, if I’m standing here sounding wise, bold, or put-together, the credit goes to her. Without her, I’d probably still just be a guy cracking dry jokes with too much confidence and zero direction.

PS: Shoutout to my parents as well. My creators. Without them, this life might as well have been a dream.

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Was there ever a time I almost gave up? This morning. Yesterday morning. Last week. Pretty much every other week if I’m being honest.

The truth is, giving up isn’t some big dramatic movie moment. It’s small, quiet. It’s you staring at the ceiling thinking, “Yeah, screw this.” I get those days all the time.

But here’s the trick I’ve learned: you still get the hell up. You drag your body, even when your mind’s screaming no. You do the things you said you would. And somehow, that’s what separates people who stay stuck from people who grow.

I don’t give up once in a lifetime. I give up once every other day… and then get up anyway.

Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What’s a cultural value you protect at all costs?
Indians are everywhere. And I’ve seen this up close—living in the States, spending time across different places. The more we travel, the more we succeed, the easier it becomes to quietly put our own roots in the backseat.

I see it in two ways. First, the subtle “foreign touch” is creeping into how many Indians speak their own mother tongue. It’s almost funny—you don’t just order coffee in English anymore, you start pronouncing your Hindi or Gujarati words with an American twang. Second, the bigger one: we start living by other cultures while sidelining our own. And look, it’s fine to learn, adopt, and evolve—we should. But not at the cost of what makes us, us.

For me, I can stand on a stage in front of a thousand foreigners, pull off a global accent, and own the room. But when I step off that stage, I go back to speaking in my mother tongue, eating my food, living my culture. That balance is everything.

“Learn from every culture, but never let yours sit in the backseat.”

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I want people to say, “He’s the guy who made English human again for Indians.”

Most of the industry is obsessed with producing smarter robots. Learn 10 new words. Memorize 5 grammar rules. Lower your pitch so you sound “serious.” Great, now you’re just a cooler robot. Congratulations.

My legacy? Breaking that. I want Indians all over the world to feel in English, think in English, and speak in English like it’s alive — with power, emotion, and presence. Not flat. Not fake. Not fearful.

If I’m remembered for one thing, it’s this: I taught Indians to stop performing English like a school exam, and start living it like their own voice.

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Priyank

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