How Mithila Palkar and Prajakta Koli Set Professional Boundaries: ‘It’s Assumed We’re a Package Deal’

When friendship overlaps with work, friction is almost inevitable. For Mithila Palkar and Prajakta Koli, years of camaraderie have also meant being viewed as a ready-made duo for brand partnerships and other projects. “It’s assumed that we’re a package deal,” Koli admits—an assumption that recently led to a professional mix-up.

Palkar explains that brands or agencies sometimes approach one of them for projects, expecting that the opportunity would be communicated by one to the other, informally.

“Sometimes, it’s taken for granted that if they contact Prajakta, then Prajakta will [loop me in herself]… But that’s not how it works, professionally. She has an agency, I have an agency,” says Palkar. Behind the warmth of their public friendship lies a clear understanding of professional boundaries: separate teams, separate contracts, separate negotiations. However, not all brands operate in the same way.

The miscommunication arose from precisely this grey area. The team reached out to Koli for an opportunity involving her and Palkar, but never reached out to Palkar herself. Koli recalls assuming that a brand had already spoken to Palkar’s team. “I assumed that they had already informed her… so nobody actually communicated with her, and I went ahead and did the work that I was supposed to do.” On Palkar’s end, the silence from the team meant the collaboration simply never materialised.

“It wasn’t a fight,” she clarifies, “it was one of those things where I needed to clear things out from my end [with Koli], that nobody came back to my team, which is why the project never happened.” The onus, they emphasise, was not on either of them to informally convey a professional opportunity—it was on any brand or agency initiating the collaboration in the first place.

What could have easily led to friction between the two, was handled with care and intent. Their approach is simple: remove the noise, and talk directly. “If there’s ever a miscommunication, I want to talk to [Koli] first,” says Palkar. That instinct—to prioritise the relationship over the rumour mill—is what safeguards their bond.

Watch the full interview on The Hollywood Reporter India’s YouTube channel at 8pm tonight.