My first-ever scratch project

From creating a vertical hanging garden out of old broken wooden frames and bamboo water bottle holder, to using the old telephones and ballcocks as an art installation, we tried to customise spaces that connect deeply with the user

It is often said, most priceless things in the world cannot be seen or touched, they must be felt by heart. Gratitude is among them.

I am writing this to express my heartfelt gratitude to UPES. One of the best things about the prestigious institution is that it provides numerous opportunities to its students through which they get immense exposure and climb the ladder of success by diving deep into the ocean of new beginnings and possibilities. The time I had spent at UPES has equipped me to set a strong foundation of knowledge for which I will always be thankful.

My professors took out the time and made sure that I am guided well to go out and challenge the world.

The incubator at UPES is worthy of its name; helping promising companies by providing resources, access to industry mentors, interactions with other entrepreneurs and most importantly, capital, to get through the survival stage.

As I am a graduate in electronics engineering, I have always been passionate about new technologies, ideas and innovation. My vision broadened further when I entered the corporate world as a hardware technical specialist in Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company. This was the turning point of my life as my mentors at UPES helped me to break the glass ceiling with ground-breaking approach of merging my creativity with technical proficiency, in the form of Industrial Designing.

UPES gave a proper structure to my ideas and dreams, and my respectable teachers, Manas Sir, Rakesh Sir and Rajan Sir, further concreted it with their tremendous guidance and support.

I consider myself fortunate to have landed in the incubation centre few days before the inaugural ceremony of UCIE cell with a start-up idea of redesigning and customising products using the Up-Cycling Method.

The Up-Cycling Method involves the creative idea of reusing and transforming useless, unwanted waste materials into new materials or products of improved quality and environmental value, using sustainable materials like brass and copper.

As I hail from Moradabad; the brass city of India, my idea is to transform into a one-stop solution by revolutionising the concept of affordable luxury when it comes to interiors, products and appliances.

Our Dean and a great mentor, Mr Ajit Nigam, inspired, ignited the imagination and instilled a sense of hope and responsibility by giving me the opportunity to redesign the space of incubation centre and student offices with the old products and materials that were stocked in college store rooms and were not used. With a full-fledged team of product, interior and graphic designers, we created a design scheme that was an amalgamation of natural material, and monochromatic colour schemes enhanced with small injections of warm metal. This truly made the incubation centre extraordinary, at the same time maintaining the professional vibe of the room. From creating a vertical hanging garden out of old broken wooden frames, bamboo water bottle holder, to using the old telephones and ballcocks as an art installation, we tried to customise the space that connects deeply with the user by telling vivid and meaningful tales.

This freedom of endless possibilities is what inspires me and brings out the best in me. I am passionate about creating thoughtful design that has a touch of simplicity and the startling elements. I find it rewarding to apply my classroom knowledge and methods from theory to the practical world.

I believe that some of the simplest design solutions can be the most effective, and a good design does not have to be visually complicated. My focus as a designer is to empower and encourage people to be themselves in totality. 

My experience at UPES has taught me two fundamental things – life is unpredictable, and learning has no boundaries.

(The writer is a second-year student from M.Design )