Latest news with #IndianSchoolforDesignofAutomobiles
Time of India
an hour ago
- Automotive
- Time of India
India needs its own automotive design identity, says Avik Chattopadhyay
As India scales up its ambitions in manufacturing and mobility, a senior industry voice has called for an urgent rethinking of the country's approach to automotive design. Speaking at the foundation stone-laying ceremony of the Indian School for Design of Automobiles (INDEA) in Pune, Avik Chattopadhyay , Chairperson of the XLRI Centre of Automobile Design & Management , said India needs to turn towards its cultural roots to establish its own identity in the global automotive landscape . 'The future of the institute rests on a single objective--to prepare world-class design talent that is productive from day one, whether in an automaker, a studio, or a research organisation,' Chattopadhyay said. The long-term goal, he added, is to create a design DNA that instinctively evokes Indian identity--even without a brand badge. Building a design DNA: From imitation to identity Drawing comparisons with Italy and Japan, Chattopadhyay pointed out how national design identities are often deeply rooted in cultural expression. 'There is something quintessentially Italian about a Benelli or a Maserati, just as there is something uniquely Japanese about a Honda NSX. But ask yourself--can we say the same for an Indian design? Not yet,' he said. He believes that Indian mobility design can draw inspiration from the country's rich heritage in craft, architecture, and visual culture. 'I've often wondered, why can't we use textiles like jacquard, zardozi, kantha, or ikat in car interiors?' he asked. 'These are deeply Indian, yet subtle. That's the kind of embedded identity we must aim for.' Chattopadhyay was candid in highlighting systemic gaps in design appreciation in India. 'We are blind to design as a people--look at how we construct our streets and public spaces. We don't think of design as integral,' he said. Even in domestic interiors, he observed, India often borrows from Western visual vocabularies that don't suit local sensibilities. 'Our postures, our body frames, are not meant for European furniture.' For India to take design seriously, he said, the country needs not just talent, but an entire design-aware ecosystem. 'There is no Make-in-India without Design-in-India,' he said. 'Design is what creates value. Manufacturing brings revenue, yes--but the delta, the differentiator that takes you from a $5 trillion to a $20 trillion economy, is design.' Studio-led learning with industry at the core The new design school, INDEA, will launch its first 25-student batch in 2026 as part of a 24-month master's programme. Structured as a hybrid of design and management, the curriculum will integrate studio learning with business thinking. 'A designer must understand not just form and function, but also consumer behaviour, product strategy, and market positioning. That's how you add value,' Chattopadhyay explained. The institute will operate in close collaboration with the mobility industry . Students will be taught primarily by working professionals, designers and decision-makers from global automotive brands and studios. 'They bring with them real-world experience--they've made mistakes, adapted, succeeded. That's something you can't find in textbooks,' he said. Rather than traditional classrooms, the school will function as a live studio--complete with sketching spaces, CAD workstations, clay modelling, and prototyping labs. 'Your final test, as a student, will be to build a working prototype. That's when we'll know if you're really worth it,' he noted. While the initial focus will be domestic, Chattopadhyay said the global appeal of the school, especially with a visiting faculty of seasoned international designers — will likely attract foreign applicants over time. While acknowledging that developing a national design identity is a long-term endeavour, Chattopadhyay is optimistic about India's potential. 'Others may have taken 50 years, we can do it in 25 or 30. The Chinese are doing incredible things. The Brazilians built the Embraer jet. India must believe it can do the same in automobiles,' he said.
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Business Standard
11 hours ago
- Automotive
- Business Standard
Bioenergy can cover 50% of fossil fuel consumption in 5 years: Gadkari
Bioenergy can cover 50 per cent of India's fossil fuel consumption in five years, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Monday while urging the automobile industry to undertake research and development on alternative fuels. Air pollution has become a big problem because of fossil fuel, the Minister for Road, Transport and Highways said at the 'Bhoomipujan programme' of the Indian School for Design of Automobiles. The transport sector is responsible for 40 per cent of air pollution in the country because of fossil fuel, the minister pointed out. A lot of research and innovation is going on in fuel and automobile engineering. "We need to protect our ecology and environment, and fulfil the dream of the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) to make India a carbon-neutral country," Gadkari said. Bioenergy can cover 50 per cent of India's fossil fuel consumption in five years which is very important because Rs 22 lakh crore is being spent on import of the fossil fuel, Gadkari said. The country is working on different fuels like ethanol, flex engine, methanol, biodiesel, bio LNG, CNG, electric and hydrogen, the minister said. Ethanol is already being blended up to 20 per cent in petrol, he said. "The future of the automobile industry is very good and today there is a huge potential for all types of new research," he said. Speaking further, he said the domestic automobile sector is an important industry which has created crores of jobs and boosted exports. "This is the industry which has a maximum export of 3 lakh crores which is economically very important for our country. It has already created 4.5 crore jobs for young talents," Gadkari said. Players like Bajaj, TVS, and Hero export 50 per cent of their production, he said.
