The National Institute of Design is an acknowledged success
story. It was set up in the early days when India was emerging
and fi nding its place in the world. Enlightened leadership from
within the country, where the government and far-sighted private
sponsors came together in the cause, and also internationally,
where the outstanding designers Charles and Ray Eames
laid the foundations, helped create the new institution. Since
then it has made rapid progress and is today acknowledged and
honoured within the country’s superior educational and training
establishments.
NID was never intended to be an ivory tower. Those who set it up
were very conscious of its role within society. Its carefully chosen
faculty, identifi ed, conserved and developed age-old traditions of
indigenous design, while helping to fi nd new applications and new
markets for traditional processes. Their efforts show-cased the
richness of India’s tradition and created important new openings
for skilled artisans. It had a profound impact at home and abroad.
The NID brand is now a byword for quality and imaginative design.
After its successful launch, NID has continuously adapted to
changing circumstances and found the key to maintaining its
edge even as the demands upon it have evolved. Today, as India
industrialises rapidly, NID graduates are called upon to contribute
not only in the traditional areas of crafts but also through close
association with modern industries.
Globalisation means that Indian products must fi nd their way into
the world’s markets, for which they must measure up in all respects,
especially in their design quality. It is very encouraging to see how
far NID has adapted to changing realities, and how the bright and
able student body has absorbed a fresh range of skills. Without
neglecting its core areas of excellence, NID has now moved with
equal success into fi elds of design linked to industrial processes
such as Automobile/Transportation Design, which scarcely existed
in India when it was fi rst set up. Thus, the demand for NID graduates
is ever increasing and the proud badge they carry after their
training in this prestigious institution has become more than ever
a signpost to success.
I wish all success to the ‘Young Designers’ annual publication for
2008. I am confi dent that as products of NID, these young designers
will remain at the forefront of the entire design movement
within the country.
