World University of Design celebrates women designers at Srijan Shakti Awards

The World University of Design in Sonipat celebrated six women designers at its first ever Srijan Shakti Awards: Incedo’s Shambhavi Gupta, Within’s Sonal Tuli, Anhad’s founder and director Jaya Kanwar, Y-Walls Design’s founder Preksha Baid, Vitasta’s director Aditi Vitasta Dhar, and Kalpavriksh Design’s founder Anushka Das. The event also featured a women-led panel discussion. 

“We have instituted the Srijan Shakti Awards to honour and recognise women who have been practicing in the creative domain and doing pioneering work, whose story need to be told for their inspiring potential,” said World University of Design’s vice chancellor Sanjay Gupta in a press release. “These Women of Design demonstrate qualities like innovative excellence, impactful leadership, diversity and inclusivity, social impact, consistent excellence, cross-disciplinary collaboration, mentorship and advocacy, preservation of culture and heritage, adaptability to change or innovative use of technology in design. The word Srijan is interpreted as creativity and innovation, while Shakti represents the power of the feminine. SrijanShakti thus alludes to the powerful relationship between creativity and the woman. A jury of prominent professionals in the creative domain assessed the nominations to choose the most inspiring ones. I extend my heartiest congratulations to all the winners.”
 
The event welcomed a number of speakers including Incubis’ executive director Amit Krishn Gulati, Desmania Design’s founder Sandhya Raman, and FabIndia Overseas’ former president of apparel Anuradha Kumra among others. The panel discussion explored how the design industry can better address the needs of women.

“The subject of women in design and creating inclusive spaces goes beyond the binaries,” said Lopez Design’s chief creative director Anthony Lopez. “There is still much to be done, as we are just scratching the surface. It all starts with the family, where we must intervene to foster inclusivity from an early age. By addressing gender expectations and nurturing an environment where both girls and boys are encouraged equally, we lay the foundation for a more inclusive society. From there, societal norms will naturally evolve.”