Praveen Nahar – Ahmedabad

Director of National Institute of Design (NID) Ahmedabad, with its extension campuses in Gandhinagar and Bengaluru, Praveen Naharhas also been a faculty member in Industrial Design and Discipline Lead of Product Design at NID since 2002. He has served on NID’s Senate and Policy Planning Committee for several years, and in various positions at NID as Activity Chairperson and Head of various departments. Praveen has been associated with research and consultancy projects in the industrial and social sectors. He has served as jury member, and been part of scientific committees and academic advisory boards.

Bhupendra Kainthola – Pune

Bhupendra Kainthola, Indian Information Service (IIS 1989) Officer, is the Director of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) Pune. He was Additional Director General with DD News in New Delhi prior to joining FTII. He has also worked as Executive Director of Lok Sabha Television. Bhupendra has also served in the Directorate of Film Festivals (Delhi), as Director of National Film Awards and Indian Panorama, besides other media units of the Government of India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

Srini Srinivasan – California

CEO of LUMIUM, a creative product design company based in Palo Alto, California, Srini Srinivasan has a technology and business background in instrumentation, consumer electronics, telecom and wireless equipment. Srinivasan served as Treasurer on the Board of Directors for the World Design Organization from 2015 to 2017, and was named President-elect for the 2017 to 2019 term. He has been on the panel of innovation judges for CES 2012 and other industry events.

Nisha Narayanan – Delhi

An experienced leader with a proven track record of over 24 years, Nisha Narayanan has been instrumental in scaling the brand RED FM to where it is right now. She has helped build sub- brands out of RJs from RED FM’s stable, along with various IPs across the country.

Nisha is also a member of the core committee at the FICCI Radio Forum since 2008, and Senior VP with AROI (Association of Radio Operators for India). She has won the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke’s ‘Business Leader of the Year’ award, and proclaimed the ‘Most trusted COO by WCRC’.

Hrridaysh Deshpande – Pune

An experienced educator and innovation facilitator, Hrridaysh Deshpande has been in the field of education for over 27 years. Presently, he serves as Director at Ajeenkya DY Patil Group, member of Governing Body and Director at Ajeenkya DY Patil University, and Director of Grand Port Hospital.Over the years, Hrridaysh has acquired proficiency in business innovation strategy and design driven innovation.

Tarun Deep Girdher – Ahmedabad

Design educator and graphic designer, Tarun Deep Girdher teaches at the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. He has over 20 years of experience in design education and professional design practice. Tarun has served as a juror in several international and national competitions including Poster for Tomorrow, Campus Diaries 25 under 25 Talent Hunt, and Typography Day.

Adil Jal Darukhanawala – Pune

A pioneering Indian automotive journalist, Adil Jal Darukhanawala has over 40 years of experience spanning magazines, events, and books. He presently heads Fast Bikes India magazine and is the first Indian ever to be honored at the Guild of Motoring Awards in the UK for his work on the Indian motoring history.

Prasoon Pandey – Mumbai

His first film as Director went on to win the Best Debut Director, Best Director, Best Script, Best Cinematography, Best Sound Design and Best Film awards at the Indian Academy of Advertising Film Art Awards. This was followed by a prolific, 25-year-long career in film-making, and multiple Cannes Lion Awards, Clios Awards, New York Festivals, Asia Pacific Adfest Awards and Abby Awards.

The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity honored Prasoon and his brother Piyush Pandey with The Lion of St Mark, as a lifetime achievement award in 2018. They are the first Asians and only the seventh in the world to receive it

Anil Sinha – Ahmedabad

Dr. Anil Sinha spent 33 years at the National Institute of Design (NID), where he chaired the Integrated Design Services, Knowledge Management Centre, Outreach and Industry Programmes and Projects for many years, and was a member of NID’s Governing Council and the Policy and Planning Committee. He also mentored and headed the Graphic Design program and Visual Communication department.

In March 2016, Dr. Sinha took over as the Director of GLS Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, where his focus is to contribute to the ‘Making of India through Design Teaching, Design Practice and Design Thinking’. Dr. Sinha has also undertaken several design projects for the Government of India, authored the book ‘Ideating Identity’, and served on the jury for selection of the Indian rupee symbol.

Rikke Hansen – Kolding

Graphic designer and educator, Rikke Hansen has a passion for graphic design and typography. As Head of Department at Design School Kolding (Denmark), she played a significant role in developing new educational programs for the future. She has also been Head of Designhoejskolen Hoejer, an independent design high school.

Currently she is an external Associate Professor at the University of Southern Denmark, and also teaches a variety of design courses at different design schools. Rikke has been a juror at the 14th BICM, International Mexico Poster Biennial.

Saurabh Singh – Muscat

Design Lead, Ras Al Hamra Development Project, PDO, Saurabh has over 25 years of experience in architecture, urban design, design management and project management with organizations in India and the Middle East region (Sultanate of Oman, Qatar and UAE). Skilled in concept design development, he has a sensitive approach to context, environment, and design vision. He is proficient in master planning and architectural design development of a variety of building types.⠀

Gurmeet Rai – Delhi

Conservation architect Gurmeet Rai has worked on management plans for world heritage sites, urban conservation strategies for historic settlements, sustainable cultural heritage tourism, and preparation of advisory and policy documents. Gurmeet received the ‘Award of Distinction’ under the Asia Pacific Architectural Heritage Awards in 2002 and 2004, following which she has been on the jury.

She is currently a member of the Steering committee of TERRA 2021, World Congress on Earthen Architectural Heritage (Getty Conservation Institute), and serves on several national advisory and academic bodies related to heritage.

Geetika Gupta – San Francisco

A design and management professional with 20 years of experience in the fashion industry, Geetika Khanna has been Academic Director of the Art Institute of California for more than 14 years. She also started and managed Sitara, a company selling women’s resort wear and scarves for over seven years.

Subrata Bhowmick – Ahmedabad

Subrata Bhowmick is an alumnus of the National Institute of Design (NID), where as a student of Industrial Design he specialized in textiles. He was the National Creative Director of Mudra Communication Ltd. for over two decades. Subrata also served as Design Director of the Calico Museum of Textiles and the Calico Design Center, and was the Design Editor of Marg Publications. Among India’s most lauded designers, he has won over 60 prestigious national and international awards, including the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ by Edutainment Awards 2016; and ‘Honorary Fellow of ADI’ by Association of Designers of India.

G V Sreekumer – Mumbai

Prof. G. V. Sreekumar of IIT Bombay created a new field called H-H-I (Human Human Interaction), which focuses on the human-centric aspects of design and everyday life. He has earlier worked as an art director, cartoonist, calligrapher, illustrator and infographics designer. Currently he is a design consultant for many publications, and a visiting faculty member at several institutes in India. He is also a member of the Text Book Committee, NCERT, Government of India.

Vidhika Rohatgi – Pune

Chief Design Officer at EY FCUX, India, Vidhika Rohatgi has over a decade of experience in UX Design, Design Thinking, and Design Led Digital Transformation. Vidhika is Founder of two successful startups in the experience design consultancy and education space, the first of which is Fortune Cookie UX Design (FCUX), which has been acquired by EY India. Her belief in giving equitable access to education in future skills subsequently led to the launch of ImaginXP.

Surya Vanka – Seattle, WS

Founder of Authentic Design, Surya Vanka is also president emeritus of the Seattle Design Festival, chair of Interaction Week 2019, and chair of the 50 th anniversary International Design Conference of IDSA. He has been director of user experience at Microsoft, a tenured professor of design at the University of Illinois, and a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study.

Creator of the Design Swarms method used in business, non-profit and education worldwide, he is a member of the Word Design Organization and has served on the jury of several global design awards.

Abhijit Bansod – Bengaluru

A postgraduate from the National Institute of Design, Abhijit Bansod founded Studio ABD in 2008. He has many awards to his credit including Top Outstanding Designer, Top Innovation Award, China, 2018; India’s Best Design Studio, 2017 – Industrial Design and Packaging Design; Young Creative Entrepreneur 2011 by British Council; and Red Dot Design Award 2010. Abhijit has been a Jury Member for Cannes Lions Design, 2012; India Design Mark 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016; and Fakestival 2014.

Nachiket Thakur – Pune

Strategist & executioner, Nachiket Thakur offers 21 years of design and innovation led transformational experience in various industries.  Mentor to innovators and new technology startups as part of the Atal Incubation Mission, he has worked with global multinational companies to develop new technologies and products.

He is also a bamboo evangelist working with several organizations to popularize the use of bamboo, including Bamboo Vishwa, Maharashtra Bamboo Promotion Foundation, Bamboo Society of India, and MITID Bamboolife Studio.

Kieu Huyen Pham – Hanoi

An award-winning graduate of the Graphic Faculty, Hanoi University of Industrial Fine Arts, Pham Huyen Kieu founded Haki Group in 1994; the Group’s activities cover branding, advertising and craft. After 18 years of direct management, Kieu is now a member of the Board of Directors, Haki Group, and Chief Consultant for the Haki Brand. He is also a strategic advisor for a number of businesses in the field of building materials, real estate services, manufacturing and distribution of consumer goods.

Kshitiz Anand – Delhi

Designer and Associate Vice President at Paytm, Kshitiz Anand has vast experience in setting up and leading design teams across industry and academia.He is also the chairman of Happy Horizons Trust, which uses the power of design, technology, and creativity to improve the quality of education in schools.

Kshitiz has helped set up a design college and was instrumental in leading the Social Innovations program for a French design school in India. He is also a founding partner in Karekaba Ventures, an impact investment firm.

Mikko Koria – London

Mikko Koria is the Professor and Director of the Institute for Design Innovation at Loughborough University London, UK, and a Visiting Professor at Aalto University, Finland. As a researcher and practitioner passionate about design-driven social and enterprise innovation, the last thirty years has seen extensive work with large and small organisations, start-ups, NGOs and the public sector in European, Asian, African and South American countries.

As a global design thinker and doer, he engages widely with service design, design for policy, design for business models, ecosystems and entrepreneurship with enterprises, health and education, university-industry collaboration and humanitarian work.

Sudhir Sharma – Pune

Founder of Indi Design, Sudhir Sharma is also Founder and President of ‘Design India’, India’s largest social community of professional designers; and Chief Editor of Designindia magazine (formerly known as POOL). An alumnus of the World Economic Forum’s World Design Council, Sudhir was on the inaugural design jury at the 2008 Cannes Lions Festival, and has served as jury member at Adfest 2009, Dutch Design Awards 2011 and 2012, and Design Turkey.