I am a Red Dot award-winning strategic product designer with over 11+ years of experience, recognized as a double gold medallist from NIFT Bangalore and the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. Currently, I lead a multidisciplinary design studio at one of largest drone companies in India, where we design UAV systems for multiple sectors like defence, surveillance, mining, and logistics industries on both the industrial design and UX side.

Deeksha Saini is an entrepreneur and product design professional with a strong background in creative product development, design innovation, and business leadership. As the Founder and Owner of Glass Forest, a venture established in 2019, she has successfully transformed her passion for design into a thriving business, creating unique products that blend creativity, functionality, and aesthetic appeal.

Meir Living, founded in 2022 by NIFT Mumbai alumna Manya Gupta, creates home décor that combines storytelling, craftsmanship, and contemporary design. Collaborating with artisans from Agra and Moradabad, the brand develops culturally rooted products using materials such as metal, wood, and terracotta. Its small-batch, low-waste production model reflects a strong commitment to sustainability, complemented by its initiative of planting one tree per product sold, with over 1,200 trees planted.

About the project

Villianur Terracotta Craft by Villianur Terracotta Craft Cluster, Puducherry CBDP 2025 | NIFT Chennai | F&LA | Semester 7 | Batch 2022–26 The Craft Based Design Project at the GI-tagged Villianur Terracotta Craft Cluster, Puducherry, provided students with hands-on exposure to terracotta as a traditional craft and production system. Students learned clay preparation, wheel throwing, shaping, drying, firing, finishing, and packaging, while understanding material behaviour and production realities.