We are thrilled to share an inspiring journey with you—an exclusive interview with CLAT 2024 AIR 1, Jai Bohara. Jai’s dedication and hard work paid off as he achieved the top rank in one of the toughest law entrance exams in India.
As a proud student of Law Prep Tutorial, Jai’s success story is a testament to his unwavering focus and the right guidance. Read on to discover his preparation strategy, tips for future aspirants, and the role Law Prep Tutorial played in his remarkable achievement.
About Jai Bohara (CLAT 2024 Topper)
Jai Bohara, CLAT 2024 AIR 1, comes from a family deeply rooted in the legal profession. With his grandfather and parents all being lawyers, Jai’s interest in law was sparked from an early age.
Initially considering studying law abroad, Jai shifted his focus to pursuing his legal education in India around February 2023. After researching various institutes for the best CLAT coaching in India, he chose Law Prep Tutorial, impressed by its renowned faculty, comprehensive study material, and a strong presence across India.
Starting his CLAT preparation in June 2023, Jai’s dedication and strategic approach led him to achieve the top rank in CLAT 2024.
CLAT 2024 Topper Jai Bohara Interview
Here is the exclusive interview of Jai Bohara by Law Prep Tutorial:
LPT: What made you choose CLAT or law as a field?
Jai: I have always been interested in law. My grandfather was a lawyer, and my parents are also lawyers, so the family background and interests were there. That’s why I chose law; this field seemed interesting from the beginning.
LPT: How did you come to know about CLAT?
Jai: Originally, I planned to do law outside of India, but that plan changed around February 2023. Then, I searched for some institutes and found Law Prep to be the best.
It always had the best faculty, CLAT study material, and infrastructure, and its branches are all over India, so I chose Law Prep and started preparation around June.
LPT: When an aspirant prepares for CLAT, he has a lot of fears in his mind. Did you also have some such fears in your mind?
Jai: Yes, GK was my biggest fear. In fact, there came a point where I thought I would just quit preparing for GK altogether. There’s no purpose to GK.
But then, there was Mohit sir at the Jodhpur center, and his guidance was there from the beginning to the end. The notes provided in the CLAT express, along with other resources for GK, were more than enough.
Covering everything in GK is never possible, but what we were studying, we were studying very thoroughly. One method of Mohit Sir was, for example, in CLAT Express, if there are 30 topics, on the first day, do 5 topics.
The next step is to revise those five, then do the next 5, then revise those, and then do 10 and revise 5. Do this until you have 25 topics. Then, the first 5 that you have revised 6 times and move on to the next stage in your mind. They used to make us follow that study method.
Every day, we used to revise two CLAT Expresses, and when we had revised one CLAT express so many times, it took 2 hours in that time frame. Even though you may have covered around 300 topics very well, many people covered more than a thousand topics.
But there’s no purpose to that because what you’re covering should be done very well, and you should know everything about it.
LPT: Often, when you’re taking admission into institutes and preparing, you have many doubts in your mind, like, “Will I be able to do it or not?” The field I’m entering ultimately shapes my career and my entire life around that field. You might have some doubts when preparing for a career in law, such as when you start CLAT preparation. Did you have any doubts or questions in your mind?
Jai: Yes, so what I did was I decided for a full two months because once you make a decision, there should be no doubts left. If it affects your preparation, once I choose to do law, all I have to do is take the CLAT exam, give that number, and give the paper.
By then, all decisions should be made, and there should be no doubts once you decide. Take your time, but after making the decision, stick to it.
LPT: Students often look for a book that they can read, and complete the CLAT syllabus by reading a single book because CLAT doesn’t have a syllabus. Are there any books you suggest that you’ve read that have helped you in your CLAT journey?
Jai: There is no single book for CLAT because it depends on the current topic, and you’ve never read about it. It is more of a skill-based exam than a syllabus-based exam. There is no fixed syllabus for CLAT.
However, in terms of books like RC and CR, I got them done, and the teacher cleared up all my doubts. The teacher sometimes revises them twice, so they are very helpful for your skill-building.
Otherwise, with those CLAT preparation books, your skill will build up, and in classes, you’ll get a lot of content that you won’t get anywhere else. Reasoning, which is the pattern of CLAT, is not in any other paper, so you can only get that content from the institute, so focus entirely on that content.
LPT: When you begin your preparation, there are some subjects that you’ll feel confident about, like, yes, I can do this subject easily, and I’m confident in this subject. What were those subjects? Which subjects were they?
Jai: In my case, CR and QT were subjects I was confident about from the beginning because I solved the CLAT previous year’s papers and sample papers.
Now, there are around 15 papers and sample papers. Thus, I solved all of them and analyzed which topics were weak for me and which were strong because there’s a difference between the actual paper and the mock paper.
The CLAT mock test is for testing your preparation, and the actual paper combines everything. Exactly. I analyzed those papers so that QT and CR did not worry me.
LPT: One part of preparation is studying. And another part is practicing. Classes and your school are also part of it. How did you divide and manage your time?
Jai: What I used to do when I went to school for some time because attendance was required, and when I was here, I would devote all my time to CLAT. My routine was that there were 3 to 4 hours of classes in the morning.
After class, I would take a short break, a lunch break, and then after that, I would give a mock. I gave the mocks between 2 and 4 so that some productive activity was done during that time and that your mind would remain active, even in the final paper.
So, I practiced mocks four times a week almost daily, and analysed them on other days. In my opinion, just giving mocks won’t do anything. Along with that, you have to analyze it, and you have to focus on your weak points and strong points.
One thing I did was every 10 mocks, I collected doubts from one section, like in the legal section, if there were 40 doubts in the plus box. I would come to you or some other teacher and tell me what kind of mistakes I’m making in this, in some topic, in some concept, or in some particular problem that I’m specifying.
So you should do ten mocks together so that it happens. So that was my main practice, and around July, the speed drills that started around that time were also very helpful.
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LPT: How many hours should a student study after classes so that they can clear CLAT and score AIR-1?
Jai: So if you’re doing offline classes for four hours, then, according to me, above that, in today’s time, you should study for five hours. Then, around July, you can increase it to six to seven hours and bring it back to five in the last month.
LPT: Okay. So, reduce the studying last month. Cut it down a bit. Why is that?
Jai: The reason is that naturally, last month, many questions came to your mind, and many problems arose while you were studying. If you keep studying, those things keep increasing.
Moderation should be maintained between studies and other things, and on the day of the paper, 50 per cent is studies, and 50 per cent is a mental state. Focus on your mental state in the last month. Do what feels good.
LPT: I have seen many students who perform very well on center mocks but perform poorly on the CLAT exam, and when they come out, they feel like they don’t know what happened, as if their minds just stopped working during the exam.
Jai: With me, before the exam, I was very stressed. I reached the center quite early, and it was very calm; it was basically an Ayurvedic college. I went out for a bit and normalized. Then, after about 1 hour or 1 hour 20 minutes, I felt like it wasn’t working anymore.
I left everything, closed everything, and took a break. And once I put my head down, it took five minutes. The thing is, we have 120 minutes. Assuming the invigilator will come, a lot will happen, so 105 minutes is what we can complete.
Taking a break in between is not a waste of time. I used to feel before that if I took a break, it would waste my time. But the thing is, if you don’t take a break after whatever work you’re doing, and continue, you should take a break.
And the paper that was supposed to be for 150 questions was reduced to 120 last year with the changes in the CLAT exam pattern. There is not much of a problem with time. It feels like time is running out at the beginning, but eventually, when you score 80 to hundred marks with a lengthy paper, you don’t have any issue with time.
LPT: Breaks are also crucial during preparation. What was your strategy regarding breaks?
Jai: My strategy was to study for 55 minutes and take a 5-minute break. And I did that three times, and after doing that, I took a half-hour break after a 3-hour study session.
So, there are only so many breaks in this way, and there are few. One thing to remember is that during the 5-minute break, don’t use your mobile because once you start using it, you lose track of time. I used to walk around the center and come back.
LPT: There was an incident, too. Jai, we were conducting a PI, and Anupama Ma’am checked your phone and the screen time displayed on the phone. So, tell us about that incident.
Jai: I was expecting it. Someone had told me that Ma’am would check the screen time on the phone, but it hadn’t happened to two or three batches before.
I relaxed a lot that there was no problem with the phone, whether there was a problem or not because no one had checked the screen time in the PG, so I believed that there was no screen time on my phone that I had tried very hard but didn’t find it.
Still, the experience made me realize that I should ask for the phone myself for safety, and when it was checked, there was a lot of screen time. After that, I sat down once, and when she said and removed it once, then after that, I understood, and it was right because there was a preparation time of 3 months, so I reduced the screen time a lot.
LPT: Cell phones are both a distraction and a refreshing factor. But the way you use it plays a role in your life. Jai, if I start preparing today, should my strategy be decided according to the month or three months, or should I make a different strategy every day? Make a different strategy every week. What should be the period of my task table and timetable?
Jai: Whatever strategy is there, if it starts today, it should end on the day of the paper. If you make a strategy today and change it after two weeks, then neither your old nor new strategy remains useful. So, it’s better to have a long-term strategy.
Now divide it into phases of operation. We sleep from three, starting from then, gradually starting, and gradually reducing the time spent studying to two months. Then, in the last 2 months, the study time will gradually be reduced again.
And there’s one thing that, like Soumya Bhaiya, he was the CLAT 2019 topper. He’s also from Law Prep. I talked to him, and he told me not to study on the last day. My third paper was about the fact that I hadn’t touched the books the day before. So, keep the strategy from start to finish. But initially, keep it less, then increase it, and gradually reduce it again.
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LPT: Which subject should one start with?
Jai: Start with the topic or subject that you feel is not strong enough. Once you start with it, you will have two benefits: you will get a little advantage in marks directly because it’s your strong part, and you will gain confidence that yes, I can do it, and you can use that confidence where you are weak.
LPT: When you came to coaching and took classes, what was your score in the first mock? Many students have a misconception that they must analyse their score from the first mock itself. If you score more than 80 or 90 in the first mock, then what was your score in the first mock?
Jai: At that time, the marks were 150, so my score in the first mock was around 55 to 60.
LPT: The score in the first mock was around 55 to 60 out of 150. Then, improvement came, and Jai gradually increased the marks. What was the major reason for that?
Jai: The major reason was that I remembered something Sonia, ma’am, said on the first day. She mentioned that your score in mocks is for your learning instead of just practicing.
Instead of focusing on how many marks I’d get in my CLAT paper, I started learning from each mock. Initially, I made a lot of mistakes in every paper, but I kept identifying the patterns of those mistakes and worked on them. Each time, my goal was to make new types of mistakes and correct them better.
Eventually, your mistakes improve, and you begin to see what you’re doing wrong and learn from it every time. I found this learning opportunity in 80 mocks, which means I had about 400 opportunities.
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LPT: So, did you also analyse the mocks, and how much time did it take? Because many students think, “Oh, we’ve done a two-hour mock, so we just noted the marks in fifteen or twenty minutes, and we are done with the analysis.” Did your analysis take fifteen minutes or half an hour?
Jai: No, when I started, my analysis took 2 to 3 hours because there were many mistakes, and even as it gradually decreased, it still took about 1 hour until the end. It takes at least an hour for analysis, which initially took two to three hours.
LPT: Spending too much time reminded me of an incident with Jai, where he couldn’t study consistently for a long time. There was a situation where I insisted that he sit and study here for six hours straight. There were no breaks, not even a fifteen-minute break in between, and that started to frustrate Jai a bit. Although it was beneficial for many students, it was problematic for Jai. So, Jai, tell us about that incident from your perspective.
Jai: When the timetable was made, it was initially said that no breaks would be given. Initially, I thought that all teachers would say the same thing, that no breaks would be given, and we would only have a five-minute break in between.
I tried to devise various excuses, like the water cooler not working in the morning or not getting cold water, and many other excuses. Still, you didn’t listen, and studying continuously for too long was difficult for me. But then, even that plan, as a general rule, you told me to leave if it wasn’t working for me.
Yeah. So, one important thing is that many people will ask you to do different things, but what matters is what you feel benefits you. Because you know best, you should be honest with yourself about whether something is benefiting you or causing you loss and then act accordingly. There isn’t a single way to do things, you know.
LPT: What advice would you give students to improve their CR and QT?
Jai: The best way to improve CR (Critical Reasoning) is to practice and limit your content. Like what many students used to do? I saw that they were bringing mocks from different places and practising from different places.
The problem with that is that CR is a very personalised subject. If you do it from one source, stick with that source consistently, and then you will understand CR.
The explanation style varies a lot, and you will get confused by it. That’s how you learn. Stick to one style that benefits you; in the case of QT, it’s just practice. Once you properly understand the concept from teachers, then it’s practice. Do sheets, do modules, and do marks.
LPT: Should you study all subjects together or one subject at a time, then another subject the next week?
Jai: If there’s too much gap between subjects week-wise, I used to decide on a time frame. I would study English, CR, or legal subject in one and a half hours or one hour.
On that day, I would study the subject I felt the need for; for example, if I performed poorly in a mock recently, then I would study that subject. You should keep changing according to the mock.
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LPT: According to the mock, do you feel the need to work on any specific subject? Or has the teacher done something in class?
Jai: Categorize subjects and decide that I will study one subject for an hour from each category. But don’t leave any subject for more than a week. This means you should study all subjects at least once a week.
LPT: Every week, each subject should come once. Absolutely. Which subject of yours was such that you absolutely didn’t feel like studying and wouldn’t study it now?
Jai: I didn’t study legal much because I didn’t feel like studying it. I used to read articles. When you told us to make notes, I hesitated a lot, but then I started making them.
LPT: Legal reasoning, as such, is a very interactive subject in itself.
Jai: I felt like practicing but didn’t like studying theory. I didn’t feel like it. So, we still had to make articles somewhat forcefully. So, has it ever happened that you absolutely didn’t feel like studying, but because the teacher forced you, you had to do it.
You once forced us to study IT law, and it was very forceful, but it came in the paper, so it was worth it.
LPT: Sometimes, when a teacher forces you to do something, it might come in the exam. So, please be cautious with that. Right? Now tell me, if it’s been 2-3 months since my preparation, should I start mock after that or should I start mock from the first month or first week?
Jai: Actually, I was initially scared about the marks. I would take ten days to mark, but the teachers forced me and arranged for a mock. I was initially afraid about how many marks I would get, and then I would be scared if I could do it or not.
There is this doubt, but you should give the first two mocks and keep giving mocks because you might not benefit from giving mocks initially. You might see benefits only after ten or fifteen mocks. It’s like taking medicine and seeing benefits after ten or fifteen days.
LPT: I once asked, “Jai, what was your rank in the mock?” He said, “I don’t even look at the rank. I am not concerned about rank. I look at the marks to see which subjects I am falling behind in. What’s the logic behind not looking at the rank?
Jai: What happens is that there is always an element of luck in a rank, and what does rank signify? You compete your preparation with others’ preparation. That builds unnecessary stress and anxiety. Everyone is in different preparation phases.
For example, if someone has been preparing for two years, they’re in a different phase of preparation, and if you’ve just started, you’re in a different phase. But if you start looking at ranks, you’ll be demotivated from the beginning, and as a beginner, you won’t be able to grow.
LPT: Three elements are essential in the CLAT. When we prepare, there are three essential life elements: family, friends, and teachers. First, please tell us what role family plays in your life during preparation.
Jai: My parents are both lawyers, so one thing was constant: their support. I used to live in Udaipur, so whenever I needed help for 5 to 6 hours, I would call them, and they would come immediately.
This support was crucial, and there was no pressure from them. It’s very important that there’s no pressure from the family. I’ve seen many people whose performance suffered in the exam due to family pressure.
LPT: How important is friendship during CLAT preparation? Does having friends feel good, or is it a distraction? What’s your take on it?
Jai: Friendship should have a positive impact on your overall life. If someone isn’t bringing positivity, then they’re not your friend. And if they are but are distracting you, then remove them as friends.
Another thing many people do is befriend others based on their marks. That’s not really beneficial. A person’s value goes beyond their marks. Someone might have good marks but could be a better friend. Conversely, someone might have poor marks but can be a great friend. So, don’t base friendships solely on marks.
Instead, focus on other qualities, like their support and contribution to your overall growth. And one thing to remember is that sometimes there might be fights among friends or within friend groups. At that time, remember that you’re here to take the exam. It doesn’t matter if you never talk to 90% of these people again. It’s okay if there’s a disagreement with someone; focus on the exam.
LPT: As we discuss friends and groups, many distractions can come in a CLAT aspirant’s journey. Many things might attract you and waste your time. What distractions could be in a CLAT aspirant’s journey, and how did you deal with them? How did you deal with those distractions?
Jai: As I arrived at the Jodhpur center, many people were coming from outside. So, many people are involved in different things. Maybe some of them are into drinking, some are into smoking, and sometimes they suggest you try it too. Or some may suggest going out for a meal or a walk after class.
These things can be distracting. Initially, you might think it doesn’t matter whether you go out for one day or two days. But you’ll find that you end up enjoying yourself with these people, and it’s important to limit that. After the mock on Sunday, I’ll spend some time enjoying with friends, but I’ll try to engage in activities that are overall beneficial, like playing games or going for a walk with friends, rather than just hanging out or eating.
These activities are less distracting because you can’t completely isolate yourself. That’s also beneficial, so you need to strike a balance.
LPT: What role have the teachers of Law Prep played in your CLAT journey?
Jai: I had no idea about CLAT exam, so my parents had also studied law before this for many years. So, we came to Law Prep, and on the first day, we spent the whole day meeting the teachers for each subject to understand what needed to be done.
We made a complete policy on the first day. I was apprehensive about GK, so I discussed with Mohit Sir for almost two hours what to read and what not to read in every type of sports news and everything. So, the teachers provide guidance.
Sometimes, you may feel that this guidance is not always correct. Any guidance cannot be one hundred percent accurate, but the teachers’ guidance has been tested over time, and many students have followed it and benefited from it, so that teacher is there. Therefore, follow the teachers’ guidance. That way, your success rate will be the highest.
LPT: Sometimes, you might ask yourself why Sir is saying this. This is very normal. You might feel that this is not useful at all. But ultimately, that thing worked. So, some things you initially felt were not helpful but later turned out to be very useful. Do you remember any such things?
Jai: I didn’t look at the first passages in GK at all. Why should I look at passages in GK? Then Mohit sir explained that, go through the passage once. Sometimes, it helps with the questions, which was very useful this year in the paper and one thing you guys used to do was add something tricky in every mock.
So, we had to pay attention, and then you explained it. Yes, that was very important. What happened once was in the last mock, it was the last second-year mock, they kept us in a room for half an hour and then gave the paper at 2:30.
Someone started fighting between the papers at 3:30. So, if you practice in such an environment, obviously the mock performance will be terrible. But this thing prepares you for the day of the paper.
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LPT: There are also many distractions during paper time, and dealing with them can be very difficult.
Jai: During paper time, your mind is filled with many thoughts. There are many things happening. At that time, you need to remember one thing: Out of the 1 hour and 20 minutes, 15 minutes will be wasted in all factors for me.
I should utilize the remaining 1 hour and 5 minutes to the best of my ability, and I can think about these things later. Those 1 hour and 5 minutes won’t return when I can’t do the paper.
LPT: If I start my preparation today, please briefly tell me what I should do subject-wise. Any aspirant listening to this, what should they do in legal reasoning? What should they do in QT? Can you provide a brief strategy for all five subjects?
Jai: In legal reasoning, it’s best to start by studying the theory of all subjects. I looked at many sources but found Law Prep modules to be the best. They provide relevant details without being overly detailed because they focus primarily on law rather than law entrance exams.
Another helpful strategy is to read articles. You can find many articles online or refer to compilations released every two weeks by Law Prep.
LPT: For Critical Reasoning?
Jai: For Critical Reasoning (CR), I used to read editorials from The Hindu. I would analyze the arguments, strengths, and weaknesses according to my understanding.
LPT: This specifically regards QT because Jai has been interested in math since before. For Jai, QT was relatively easier, but he also believed this before and convinced many students and his friends that QT is a section you should not skip. You have to attempt whatever comes, which will get you the rank. So what else did you do for QT, or what should a new aspirant do?
Jai: Regarding QT, it remains that many children do not attempt QT in the first twenty to thirty mocks, so that is a big loss because if you are bringing even one number in QT, you are bringing one number more, and one number has a lot of value. One hundred ranks change due to one.
This is a big plus point regarding QT. If you bring six to seven numbers in QT, you will progress a lot in the ranking. Efforts should be made in QT, and many people think it is about bringing twelve numbers together.
Why should we put effort into it? That’s the issue; otherwise, QT is a very approachable subject if you go with the same mindset as you do in GK or CR.
LPT: GK has troubled you, hasn’t it? Which resources should be followed in GK, and how should its strategy be approached?
Jai: So, I mainly followed only one source, CLAT Express. Apart from that, I would revise notes on specific topics if there were notes from classes. Otherwise, I can rely solely on CLAT Express to maximize its revision.
LPT: Is it better to have more sources in GK or is it better to spend more time reading from one source?
Jai: Spending more time reading from one source because otherwise, when you open the paper, you might feel like, “I’ll tell you everything,” but whether it will come or not is uncertain.
LPT: Many students feel that they do not get everything in one magazine or book. Certain topics are beyond them, which may be in other institutions or civil services magazines. There is a fear of missing out (FOMO) about it. Inside, there is a lot of FOMO developed among students. What would you say about that?
Jai: I also had a lot of FOMO. I used to keep asking you about GK repeatedly. Even once, I started a magazine and then left it because it didn’t seem to have any purpose. By doing so, in the end, what I felt was that many people who had done a lot of things did not work in their papers because they had to catch them properly on any one thing.
You should grasp one thing so that you might be getting ten questions, but you are doing them correctly.
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LPT: The last point is in English and Sonia ma’am. What’s the connection between these two?
Jai: Sonia, ma’am, often scolded me on the first day. She gave a sheet of five questions. Out of five, I got four wrong. One was correct, bringing exactly 0 marks. Yes. Then, ma’am scolded me again and said that this scolding is a stamp; without this stamp, you cannot go.
Then I thought, “Wow, ma’am scolds a lot, ma’am is very strict, troubles a lot.” It didn’t feel very good to go to Ma’am’s class in the beginning. But then, eventually, when I learned the concept of what art was eaten in Ma’am’s class, my marks increased, so I felt that it was beneficial.
Today, I understand the importance of that scolding. I can relate to this because I have been Sonia Ma’am’s student and have been scolded a lot. I still sometimes get scolded by ma’am, and ultimately in mentorship because in Law Prep, maybe no one plays the role that Anupama ma’am plays.
LPT: Apart from mentoring you and how Anupama Ma’am solved your problems in Law Prep?
Jai: In Law Prep, problems often arise once or twice, whether it’s regarding teachers or other issues where I felt like I didn’t understand what to do at that time. When you’re living away from home, you can’t contact anyone suddenly.
So I went to Ma’am and asked her what the problem was. She was very helpful in resolving it, and one thing is that you can go to ma’am and tell her anything; she won’t be angry but will solve the problem. This nature of ma’am was very helpful from the beginning.
LPT: Jai, in the end, if you want you to give three tips to new CLAT aspirants, that are the most important, and they need to pay the most attention to them.
Jai: Firstly, once you decide, don’t hesitate after that, whether you’re feeling like leaving it in between. Take a break for a day, but never leave it. You have to keep going in continuation.
Secondly, you should take limited sources in every subject, and whatever sources you are using should be covered perfectly, and everything should be covered in it.
And third, which I think is the most important, especially in the last months, is that your mindset should be very good. There will be many negative people. Stay away from them, don’t talk to them, and avoid them. Go to teachers; if you feel negative about someone, don’t go to them.
Even if you feel connected to one teacher like you did with me, trouble that teacher nicely so that the teacher remembers you always.
CLAT Previous Year Papers
To help you prepare effectively and be ready for the CLAT exam date 2025, we have shared the collection of CLAT previous year papers. These papers provide valuable insights into the exam format and types of questions asked, helping you refine your study strategy.
Checkout CLAT previous Year papers of 18 years.