We are starting a series of posts that will give you a glimpse into what life at Adianta and on the rest of the Vihara Innovation Campus looks like. To kick-off, there’s the Pecha Kucha Night scheduled for tomorrow.

The first PK night of the year 2015, this event is part of a long-running tradition at Adianta. This is in fact #PKND28, and this time around, we have collaborated with The Coalition and our in-house incubator Startup Tunnel, which is currently home to 8 sizzling-hot startups. 

1. Manish Purohit, co-founder of authorsUpfont, a self-publishing platform for the creative community. He has over two decades of experience in the world of newspapers, magazines, and books- the last of which he has dabbled in print, mobile AND internet fomats, in multiple Indian languages. Not limited to creating his own work, he teaches media students as well as consults on digital publishing. Phew! He is sure to have some insights on how to make a living off of following a creative pursuit. 

2. Gaurav Jai Gupta, a woven textile designer who founded Studio Akaaro , is a man on a mission. His business is built on the philosophy that emphasizes on the continuous focus on fabric as the starting point and the design process. A champion of handlooms and craftsmanship, he is all for skill-development among craftsmen to develop and strengthen a self-sustaining model. 

Gaurav is a winner of the International Apparel Federation Designer award, 2011, and was trained at the Chelsea College of Art and Design, London and NIFT, Delhi. 

3. Yogesh Saini describes himself as an entrepreneur, creative evangelist, and idea percolator on his Twitter bio, but that’s because there’s a cap on its length at 160 characters. Yogesh Saini is an artist with a background in engineering and business (he has an MBA). He has led corporate establishments across the globe and helped found technology startups in Silicion Valley. He finally launched Delhi Street Art in 2013- a venture that helped him merge his biz skills with artistic expression. Here’s a man who’s got that figured. Looking forward to his presentation, alright!

4. Anand Prakash is popular for his papeterie and metallique works. He is a self-taught gifts, accessories, and stationery designer who has built a successful business around it. He launched his brand in 1999 with paper crafts, and slowly made his way into metal craft, that brought his much popularity and praise. Meet him on the Adianta School’s Global Pecha Kucha Night tomorrow. 

5. Pranav Sawhney is an engineer by education, and maker at heart. This is evidenced by the fact that he founded Delhi Makers– a community that perpetrates and nurtures the maker culture in Delhi. You’ve probably been to its meetups and workshops? He started his careers by working with his family business, developing his own clientele and providing them with offset printing solutions and manufactured paper boxes and cartons. Eventually this got him interested in 3D Printing, and the rest, is as they say, maker’s history. 

6. Laura Quinn is founder of Do One Thing, a strategy consultancy where she advices arts organisations on developing private sector partnerships as well as with companies in developing CSR strategies. She is part of the management team at our partner organiser, The Coalition (three cheers!), and has extensive experience in brand strategy and advertising.

                                       SNACK BREAK!!!!

Our in-house, employee venture Bak Bak Cafe will be hawking its wares at the event. Which brings us to our next presenter…

7. Neha of Confettish (co-founded with Gauri), who loves celebrations, and with her business and its products, hopes to make the perfect host(ess) of everybody who intends on throwing a party. She used to be a management consultant with a Big-4 firm in the past, and that’s where her she honed her keen biz sense. 

8. Mohammed Saif Qureshi, our very own alumni and founder of Intelaeon, he believes that there is a huge misconception attached to the word ‘creative’. He believes that clubbing only the arts as creative makes the sciences sound like they are at the opposite end of the spectrum. Mohd. feels that the definition of creativity in our society is crucial in redefining the educational system, so as to nurture the latent creative tendency in every child. 

Also an amateur chef and ardent quiz master, he has also recently begun blogging. 

9. Gurpreet Singh, our 9th speaker, is an architect who started a creative agency while still in college. Always a creative entrepreneur, he is also involved with LetterNote, a design-centric lifestyle retail and e-commerce brand, and Pixpa, a platform for creative professionals to showcase, share and sell their work online. 

Wow, the atmosphere’s going to be abuzz with ideas and thought-exchange. Question is, are you going to be there?