Rupesh Arvindakshan — “With a heightened sensitivity of oneself and one’s surroundings, and an absolute passion for this planet and everything on it- one can design anything truly classic.”
Rupesh Arvindakshan works as a senior designer for an automotive major. He adorns a different avatar as a comic writer/artist when he is not at his desk. We got some philosophical answers from him about design, creativity, and life in general.
Being a designer is NOT to be an elite alien sprinkled with some blessed stardust.
Being a designer IS to be human and be humane — belonging and catering to the same earthly dust that each one of us is made up of.
What kinds of different hats have you had to put on while working in a designer’s shoes? Which such role/project was most challenging?
I have stopped accounting the number of hats I wear everyday of my professional life. End of the day- the last hat I put on is the designer’s, and unfortunately I wear it for the least possible duration. As with everything, you do the best thing the least. So it leaves you quite desolate, bare and even more hungrier.
What is the most valuable (design) lesson you’ve learnt from someone who is not a design practitioner?
It took me sometime to understand what my grandfather had once said when I was a small 6-year-old kid. Holding his hand, I was excitedly witnessing the fall of a tree. He said “When you build something, you always destroy something. When you destroy something, you always build something”. He advised me ‘to be sensitive to both in the world; always be grateful, measure them first and choose one’s path accordingly’. After all these years, in retrospect — I feel that those were the first design lessons I had ever learnt. With a heightened sensitivity of oneself and one’s surroundings, and an absolute passion for this planet and everything on it- one can design anything to be truly classic.
What would you say is the defining characteristic of “Indian” design? Do you think there is a modern visual language that is specific to India?
I always wondered whether we really need a design language? This thought is an outcome of comparative reference to the west. Do we really need one? Everyone seems to be quite persistently pursuing it and I see this eternal question again on my desk today.
To design is a conscious act of making life better day by day, generation by generation. There is a globalised quality and thought to this new profession. Our Design, our works will reflect our vast association with this geography & culture, consciously or subconsciously, because India is very much engraved in our blood whether we want it or not.
The beautiful thing about this vast, diversely rich country is its globalised belief in itself e.g. “Vasudhaiva kutumbakam’. It has always absorbed, debated, accepted, forged, created something radically new out of it and diversified locally to create something for betterment of mankind. This makes the pursuit of one sole vocabulary challenging. It becomes more complex for visual identity, because India’s culture is always ‘content rich’, ‘story rich’, ‘process/system rich’, and it believes visuals are mere metaphorical representation — an illusion, a Maya. It has always urged its believers to look beyond the ‘illusion’. Our Ramas and Krishnas are not so enviably handsome and brawny like Davids, Goliaths and Zeus. So that makes everything poetic and leaves us in a transfixed situation.
But like the rest, if we think it is necessary then, I do believe that we should unearth our rich past, understand the essence, accept diversity, develop a modern contemporary design language, celebrate, abide & propagate, like the successful Japanese with their ‘Iki’ or ‘Sabui’ or ‘Wabi Sabi’ philosophies rather than creating all those elements as an identity which the foreign design communities perceive our country to be.
Being creative is largely about having the courage to fail repeatedly. Could you give an example from your own experiences of a project that failed? What went wrong, and what did you learn/take away from that experience?
Failure simply means ‘Unmet expectation’. Well I don’t really keep any expectations from my design, clients, customers or products, for if I do — then this forum is too short for a synopsis.
No matter how experienced you are, with every new project you start like a student and mature into an experience designer by the end, and the ‘best solutions’ will only haunt you after the project is done and dusted. The things I thought will be a ‘hit’ have miserably failed. The things I didn’t believe, went on to be a massive success. So it’s all a ‘Maya’, you know. But you go on learning more and giving your best.
What can a student/fresh graduate and an experienced professional learn from each other in the design industry?
For Design peers — The student are a window to generation next. You always design for future and hence they are subjects to be observed and studied. With it come some healthy tips — only a student can teach you to ‘Stay young and stay stupid’. For students — I think they should respect their peers, have a ear for the past, be grateful, learn from their learnings, be realistic and stay grounded while they dream.
And finally, to wrap up — How do you spend a perfect Sunday in Bangalore? Any specific recommendations or must-trys?
I make sure Sundays start early for me. Cycling or a game of badminton with family at Lal Bagh, a slow brunch with friends & families. Some gardening, some doodling, some cooking, a quick afternoon nap, some movie catching up with friends makes my Sunday special mostly. At times we do plan small outskirt retreats too.
This interview is a part of a series of conversations with designers from Bengaluru called ADI Diaries. You can find more interviews here.
