Diwakar Chintala, Design Director, Gensler, a design firm. Diwarkar has spent the last 19+ years designing for a range of domains – buildings & construction, furniture, graphic design, video documentaries and User Experience. Some of his past roles have included Graduate Thesis Advisor, Academy of Art University San Francisco, Owner, Principal Designer, Studio Chintala, Senior Designer, Skidmore Owings & Merrill LLP, Senior Designer/Project Architect, Fisher Friedman Associates, Design Director, Bryant Palmer Soto Inc. and Architectural Designer Black & Veatch. He holds an M.Arch, Architecture & Urban Design, Kansas State University and a Bachelor of Architecture, Architecture, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University.
To be a successful entrepreneur today, understanding the (to some) enigmatic world of design has become a must. This session aims to present Diwakar’s perspective on design through an eye and soul well honed through the many work-projects that have taken him to the West, Middle East and China.
Diwakar Chintala’s session – “Indian Design – Finding Answers Within” was a presentation designed well in itself – personal, honest and appropriately minimalistic (featuring an elaborate Q&A). Here are the lounge47 takeaways:
1. “Design” is far broader than just aesthetics. From the design of your product or website, to that of your visiting card, to the format of your email, to the way you communicate – all, could be viewed as design
2. Good design is primarily honest. It simply shines through, solving the problem simply and beautifully. No extraneous parts. E.g. the Iphone
3. The Indian lunch “Tiffin box” or “dabba” as it is called locally is another example of great design. It renders the experience of a home-made meal on the road
4. “Design” is the answer to a lot of life’s problems, but over-designing causes bigger problems than solving existing ones
5. Is there such a thing as Indian design? Or is design universal?
6. “Design” is subjective and can lead to emotion and conflict. When developing a design solution, agreeing ground rules such as letting logic rule could be one way to resolve deadlocks
7. Often, contrary to what many believe, things are good just the way they are. Ecosystems evolve organically and simply are. E.g. slums. Systems may just need tweaking and not a massive overhaul
8. India does not need a western design solution. Solutions may already exist here and need to be sought out and re-imagined
9. To create great design, designers need to evolve personally to be able to see the honesty detached from the noise
10. Entrepreneurs should approach design with a blank sheet of paper, forget all that exists and simply think through – what should a school do or a hospital – and build from there
11. In designing marketing messages or websites – keep messages on a page few – it is easier to communicate using a minimalist approach rather than in clutter. In summary, “design” plays a huge role in life – develop a broad definition for design and define the meaning of design for yourself.
