In the next decade or so, one may witness a boom in the product designing sector as many students establish themselves as furniture designers. Experts tell Sangeeta Yadav that the need is to focus and promote this sector like never before. One way is to rope in experienced mentors to guide students
With the advent of globalisation in India, the design industry is also reaping in the benefits. Many international academies and renowned stores are venturing in India and setting up their business in order to make full use of the opportunity. This has also led to a big shift in the outlook of the people who now appreciate the high-end design and understand the need for eco-friendly furniture and products.
From design magazines, websites, catalogues to Television shows, visual merchandising, recycling and manufacturing units, there is a plethora of opportunities now available to the students pursuing design as a career option. Then there are umpteen design competitions that one can participate in. The recently concluded Briccole design competition by the Zolijns Designs Private ltd and Riva 1920, selected top six designs which will showcase the proto-type of the product at the Milan Design Week, 2014. The winner will get a chance to visit the Riva 1920 in Italy.
Talking about the competition, Ashish Taneja, CEO, Zolijns Designs Private limited, says: “Through this competition, we wanted students to know about some of the wonderful designs that they are capable of creating. We wanted to inspire them to come up with something out-of-the-box. The job was to create a table by using Briccole material which is basically recycled wood from the lagoons of Venice.
We bring in renowned mentors from India and abroad like Sandeep Khosla, Sanjay Puri Sonali Bhagwati etc to each participant so that they can conceptualise their idea and creativity correctly. The students will get royalty of that product.”
latest development
The latest trend is not just eco-friendly products from the recycled materials but also a great fusion of Indian and western designs. “What is trending is a fusion of the classic with the contemporary and Indian sensibilities in an international finish. Another integrating development is the preservation of the actual material in its original and natural form like raw wood, metal and stone,” Sourabh Gupta, co-founder, The Design Village tells you.
Though there are few big Indian names in the field of design like Gunjan Gupta, Ayush Kasliwal, Rajeev Raini and Paul Sandeep, there are a lot of fresh talent that is needed in the market. “There are only 1,000 furniture design students who graduate every year. That’s a very small numbers as compared to lakh of doctors and engineers who pass out every year. We need many qualified institutions and experts who can get the latest tools and technology to India. Gone are the days when all parents wanted their children to be an engineer, doctor or a Chartered Accountant. We require creative skills also. There are a lot of creative and performing art in schools but it has not been encouraged. It’s very easy to start your own venture, but difficult to make it at a global level,” Taneja tells you.
Scope
“In the next 10-15 years, it’s going to be tremendous. We’ll see the quality of buildings, infrastructure, automobiles, jewellery etc improving and everything will be design oriented. Not just the institutes but various Government bodies are promoting product designers. Awards are given away to the designers annually by Institute of Indian Interior Designers and Architecture association,” Taneja tells you.
According to Gupta, “The scope is huge given that in India the focus has always been more on architecture and interior design as compared to furniture or product design. There is a lot of potential for talent in this area.”
Challenges
With every famous product, the threat of copyright issue becomes a huge challenge. Also the lack of good mentors and courses for the budding product designers. “At an institute level there need to be more courses on product design for students. Top architects and designers should encourage and promoted,” Sheetal Bahl, MD, Growx Ventures, tells you.
Where to study