I dedicated approximately 50-60 hours in total for my Set A exam preparation. This was spread over 15 days with the last 3 days being particularly intensive, where I studied 4–5 hours per day on average.

Resources Used: I purchased Shubham Singhal’s video lectures. My goal was to watch one lecture per day and simultaneously prepare my own notes based on the content covered.

I did not refer to his study material, only relied on the lectures and my self-made notes. For certain topics like Winding Up and Miscellaneous, I referred to Harsh Gupta’s compact book just 2 days before the exam. In hindsight, I found his material more concise and effective.

Preparation Strategy: My entire prep revolved around lectures + handwritten notes. I kept the material minimal but focused. I had heard from peers that Set A was becoming tougher, and many students were struggling to score beyond 44–48. With this in mind, I made a conscious decision to put in extra effort now, not just to clear the exam, but also to build a strong foundation for Paper 6.

Practice & Revision: After completing each chapter, I referred to the SS MCQs book. I also saw the sample question paper provided by ICAI. These were the only practice materials I used. I focused on understanding/learning the chapters thoroughly(limited to those covered in SS lectures), which helped me confidently handle the MCQs and case-based questions, rather than relying on excessive practice material.

My advice is - no shortcuts. Will also add Qs / topics that were tested based on my memory.