Pune Design Festival 2025

Coming Soon

Schedule

Day 1
28 Feb. 2025

08:00

Registration

09:00

Welcome Address
Suresh Venkat

09:15 - 9:45

Musical Performance

Bhargav Mistry

9:45 - 10:45

Optimistic Futurism

Dick Powell

10:45 - 11:30

Bold New Electric Vision

Ajay Saran Sharma

12:00- 12:15

Break

12:15 - 13:00

Design Research from Insights to Impact

Panel Discussion
Manoj Kothari
Uday Dandavate
Navdeep Kaur
Shipra Bhutada

13:00-14:00

LUNCH

14:00 - 16:00

Film Screening

Concurrent Sessions: Forum 2 – Anigre

14:00 - 16:00

Shaping a World with Purpose and Impact

Concurrent Sessions: Forum 1 – Ballroom 1 & 2
Ashwin Chikerur
Parag Natekar
Nikhil More

14:00 - 16:00

Cognitive AI & Emotional Intelligence in Experience Design
Concurrent Sessions: Workshop 1 – Ballroom 3
Omkar Pandharkame
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In this two-hour immersive workshop, forward-thinking designers will dive deep into advanced frameworks
for creating more intuitive, human-centric experiences. Through hands-on activities and interactive discussions, participants will learn to refine and orchestrate design solutions and harness the power of autonomous intelligence. Walk away with actionable insights and the inspiration to reimagine how AI agents can shape the future of human-machine collaboration. Read More

14:00 - 16:00

Mind the Finance

Concurrent Sessions: Workshop 2 – Mahogany

Dr. Shruti Shah

1. How to charge for the services.
2. How to manage cashflows as the clients increase.
3. Receivable management. Debtors in proportion to turnover.
4. How to assess the health of your business. Ratio analysis.

14:00 - 16:00

How to Speak, Present and Pitch like a Pro!

Concurrent Sessions: Workshop 3 – Wenge

Faezeh Jalali
Suresh Venkat
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As a professional designer, you know your colours, materials, processes, users, forms, fonts and fabrics. At the heart of all your work lies a story. A story that will bring you more clients, more accolades and more money. As you already know good storytelling is an art, but great story telling is a game changer.

But here's the problem. Your work usually speaks for itself. But sometimes it needs a little help.

Many professional designers are great at their work but not so much when it comes to talking about their work. How many times have you sat in an audience while somebody makes a 100 slide presentation, more or less about nothing? How many times have you groaned when talented designers undersell their work? How many times have you wished that a speaker would get the point?

Well that's what this workshop is for. Faezeh Jalali, accomplished theatre actor, writer and director, teams up with Suresh Venkat, anchor of PDF to take you through the steps of what it takes to Never be Boring. In this 2 hour workshop you will learn

- What are the secrets of Performative Speaking?
- What is an emotion and how should you channel it while speaking?
- Why do so some stories suck and others resonate?
- How to avoid Death by Powerpoint!
Read More

14:00 - 16:00

Seeing Through Touch: Crafting Colour with Sensory Intelligence

Concurrent Sessions: Workshop 4 – Oak

Navdeep Kaur
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As sensory needs become increasingly important in design, there is a noticeable shift toward
neuro-aesthetic approaches—designing not just for functionality but for deep emotional and cognitive resonance. The workshop explores the new emotive value systems that shape our connection to design.

"Seeing Through Touch" invites designers to investigate how tactile perception influences emotions and colour translations. It will be a collective revelation on how sensory intelligence can guide design decisions, creating softer, layered, and more intuitive experiences within a cross-cultural storytelling framework.
Key Takeaways:
- Beyond the Visual: Understanding how texture, touch, and colour shape emotion.
- Sensory Intelligence: Utilizing materiality to create deeper, more intuitive experiences.
Read More

16:00 - 16:20

BREAK

16:20 - 17:00

Beyond the Cringe: The Power of Deeply Personal Ideas
Binaifer Dulani

17:20 - 17:40

Looking Sideways

Alok Gadkar

17:40- 18:20

Animating my world with stories that matter
Vaibhav Kumaresh

18:20 - 18:40

BREAK

18:40 - 19:00

Networking
Suresh Venkat

19:00 - 19:30

Music event by Ujwal Gajbhar and the band
Followed by Dinner
Day 2
01 Mar 2025

9:00

Registration

9:30 - 10:00

Jugnu

Opening Act – Day 2
Amitosh Nagpal
A witty, raw, and poetic exploration of the storyteller’s struggle—navigating industry absurdities, creative chaos, and the never-ending search for meaning

10:00 - 15:00

Book Launches
Uday Dandavate
Janak Mistry

10:15 - 10:30

Designing a design school – A Global Vision
Siddharth Shahani

10:30 - 11:00

Honorary Fellow Session
Nina Sabnani

11:00 - 11:30

Design Tribute – RK: As I Knew Him

Kirti Trivedi
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The decade from 1984, when Prof RK Joshi was invited to join IDC, IIT Bombay as a faculty
in the newly started Visual Communication program, has had a great influence on subsequent development of Indian language typography and design. In his talk, Prof Kirti Trivedi will present an illustrated history of those years and the importance of Prof RK Joshi in it. Read More

11: 45- 12:00

Break

12:00- 12:45

Protopolis Model
MP Ranjan Session
Jacob Mathew

Shekhar Singh

Siddharth Shirole

12:45- 13:30

PPPF x PDF Riverside Chat:
The Intersection of Public Policy, Business, and Design
MP Ranjan Session
Saranya Gopinath
Dhruv Mathur
Rohit Kumar
Moderated by Suresh Venkat

13:30 - 14:30

LUNCH

14:30-16:30

Workshop – Design Business Model

Concurrent Sessions: Forum 1 – Anigre

Vishwas Mahajan
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There is prework . All participants should create their ‘elevator pitch’ and share it ahead of the workshop
An elevator pitch is a brief, persuasive speech that quickly explains a concept, product, or service in a way that captures interest and leaves a lasting impression. It’s called an “elevator pitch” because it should be short enough to deliver during a typical elevator ride—usually 30 to 60 seconds.

A great elevator pitch should:
– Clearly define the problem & how you solve it
– Highlight what makes you unique or better than competitors
– Be engaging and memorable
– End with a call to action
Read More

14:30-16:30

Sustainable Futures – the Power of Mindful Impact

Concurrent Sessions: Forum 3 – Mahogany

Gurudas Nulkar
Pravin Bhagwat

14:30-16:30

Design Education Session

Concurrent Sessions: Forum 2 – Ballroom 1 & 2

Arvind Lodaya
Ankur Walunjkar
Kirti Trivedi
Bhaskar Bhat
Anando Dutta

14:30-16:30

Forum – UX

Concurrent Sessions: Forum 4 – Ballroom 3

Anirudha Joshi
Gaurav Mathur

14:30-16:30

Crafting Stories from Everyday Moments Through Stop Motion

Concurrent Sessions: Workshop 1 – Oak

Vaibhav Kumaresh
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A hands on pixillation/ stop motion animation
workshop where participants get to shoot and animate everyday objects to life.
Participants will need to download Stopmotion Studio so they can shoot and play back on their smartphones. (https://www.stopmotionstudio.com/) Its a free software.
Read More

14:30-16:30

Workshop – Theatre & Storytelling

Concurrent Sessions: Workshop 2 – Wenge

Amitosh Nagpal

Wear comfortable clothes if attending this workshop – you might need to fly

16:30 - 16:45

BREAK

16:45 - 17:30

Mind the Style
Pankaj Garg

17:30 - 18:15

Lightness of Being
Sumant Jayakrishnan

18:15 - 19:00

Closing Keynote
Varun Grover

19:00 - 20:00

BOP Awards
Pushkar Ingle

20:00

Networking Dinner

Be a part of 2025’s most empowering event

Be a part of 2025’s most empowering event