Bhaskar holds PG/Masters in Design for Digital Experience from the National Institute of Design. Bhaskar has about 11 years of experience as a design practitioner; working with various SMEs, Internet Giants, and Fortune 100 companies. Before his design education, he has a graduate degree in Business Management. He also runs a thinking podcast show which is about connecting dots into business, technology, and design.
In one of his projects: Bhaskar has enabled DSP BlackRock to build the industry’s leading investment & delivery platform. This system has proven to be a “Super Digital Marketing Highway”; steering the AMC to be fastest-growing among the top 10 in the country. At present majority share of AMC’s revenue comes via investments made using this platform.
Bhaskar has not limited himself to a single product category but has diverse experience designing digital experiences and architecting business systems. This mindset has not only led him to work for Samsung, Honeywell, Infosys, Naukri but has exposed him to exciting side projects; like designing the game experience for Ash Men Saga with WRKS Games, London. Despite the diversity, he always felt a common thread of a holistic understanding of design. The classical model of design study is so fundamentally strong with universal relevance which is only strengthening with time. For example, the design of a user interface is an act of giving form to certain information through which other information is obtained.
Bhaskar believes that a deeper understanding of cognitive sciences is the key to crafting winning design-driven strategies. Recently he has explored a venture incubated at UNDP funded IIDF Kolkata. The project was about enabling an individual with digital tools: to order physical personalized products via well-designed & curated customized options.
People’s wardrobes are filled with stuff they don’t need. Off-Season sales, surplus production are symptoms of this disease. The thoughtlessness that goes into mass producing different things that we see today ultimately is the cause of this problem. Customization at the tap/touch of fingers is groundbreakingly opportunity space. The ultimate fusion of tangible & intangible medium.
As a test model: A set of handcrafted bag’s prototypes was designed & developed. A pilot launch was conducted with a positive response. The aim was to design an experience store with both physical experiences which enable. An individual can in-person pick and customize modular products that interconnect.
But the increased cost of production for customization and lead time: hinted towards a niche market with heavy investment in brand building with long term profit projections. Immediate mass adoption of the same seemed bit farsighted. Also, the learning was igniting new paths for further research.
The experience enabled him to identify his realization for deeper interests in practice-based research with a focus on enabling different models for tinkering and/or makers’ mindsets for the effective development of creative sensibilities.
The future is about the synergy between tangible and intangible things. The research & learning environment offered ample scope for adapting these experimental approaches. It is rather conducive to spinning radical innovation in a variety of areas. The diversity of projects has only strengthened his understanding of the more common nature of the design mind.
During his various experiences as visiting faculty at various prominent design schools over a year, he felt a strong need for cross-pollinating of classical & digital disciplines. With the growth of the creative industry, the demand for design courses has increased significantly. Multiple global avenues have opened up for design students in recent years. Also, rapid change in the design education scene in India invites more scalable systems with a focus on improved quality and impact of the education experience. Design education which embraces the zen-like life-long omnipresence of learners through immersive learning experiences into our tangible world is the way forward.
The joy of creation is the most satisfying thing for a designer. There is really some kind of adventure in creating something new which transforms us to reach from our present state to the desired state. This sort of adventure is very captivating and brings out the best in us. Empowering individuals with tools that will enable them to create and change things for better. These tools are simple to use and designed in a way that they don’t disrupt by adding complexities but rather disappear into the background and become our second nature. It ignites Bhaskar’s mind to dedicate to the cause with utmost focus and delight.
