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Tag: Rugwed Deshpande

  • The theme for this year's PDF is Nxt 25

    Pune Design Festival ready to roll out 17th edition

    By Our Staff

     

    The 17th edition of the Pune Design Festival (PDF), organized by Pune chapter of Association of Designers of India (ADI) will be held at Hotel Hyatt Regency on the Pune-Ahmednagar Road on February 3 and 4, 2023. The Festival will be held from 9 AM to 7 PM on both the days.  The 17th edition of PDF, which is a national-level annual convention of professionals, educators, and business houses related to the field of design, returns to be held in physical form, after it was held online for two years due to COVID-19 pandemic.

     

    Said ADI Pune Chapter President Rugwed Deshpande: “The theme for this year’s PDF is ‘Nxt 25’, where there will be discussions and deliberations on subjects related to changing paradigms of designs in terms of use of technology, approach of young designers in the next 25 years. The focus of the festival is on understanding how to engage with emerging or new technologies in the field of design. The theme will bring forth discussions, debate, case studies and workshops that showcase the future forward design.”

     

    There will be three keynote sessions by Samar Singh Jodha, who is the Founder and Executive Director of Red Balloon (on Creativity versus Inner Voice), Meeta Malhotra, Editor in Chief of ‘The Hard Copy’ Magazine, (on Pune: For Design, By Design) and Bharat Bala, who is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Bharat Bala Products (on History of the Future).

     

    The two-day event will also see special felicitation of some individuals, personalities who have made outstanding contributions to the field of design. Veteran design educator Kirti Trivedi will be felicitated for contribution in design education, while Pradeep Sinha, product designer and educator, and Mala Sinha, textile designer and founder, Bodhi, will be feted for pioneering efforts in design entrepreneurship.

     

    Other speakers for the Festival include Bharatbala, a distinguished film-maker, Nikki Gonnissen, an experienced designer at Thoknik in Amsterdam, Kenneth Segal, an expert in large-scale public transportation projects from Israel, Aniket Das of Ultraviolette Automotive and Rupali Bhave, a noted theatre professional.  The topics of discussions range from ‘Drama in Design’ to Challenges in the Design Business.

     

    Moreover, an initiative titled ‘Battle of Projects’ initiative will be held.  Under the initiative, students of design submit their final year projects and best awards/recognition is given to the best 30 projects across 11 different categories.

     

    Another initiative ‘Open House Workshops’ is also being held alongside, where those interested in design and design students, will be able to visit open studios and they can attend free workshops on subjects related to design.

     

  • The current war of words started with Lokmat taking over a hundred-odd billboards in Pune proclaiming that it's the #1. And on Thursday, Sakal responded with a front-page lead report pooh-poohing Lokmat's claim

    Sakal & Lokmat lock horns on being #1 in Pune

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Lokmat billboard creative and right (circled): the Page 1 news item in Lokmat

    Leading newspapers Lokmat and Sakal have taken their battle to the streets or homes or wherever their topselling dailies are read.

    Lokmat is the numero uno Marathi daily in Maharashtra and Sakal, the undisputed #1 in the all-important business and education hub of Pune. However, over the years, Sakal has spread its tentacles across Maharashtra and Lokmat has been growing its circulation in Pune.

    In the last decade-odd, the marketplace was impacted by the entry of the Dainik Bhaskar group-owned Divya Marathi, but the competition between the traditional rivals stays.

    The current war of words started with Lokmat taking over a hundred-odd billboards in Pune proclaiming that it’s the #1. And on Thursday, Sakal responded with a front-page lead report pooh-poohing Lokmat’s claim. The headline is aggressive and uses the Lokmat name in it (see image).

     

    Sakal hits back at Lokmat
    The creative of an ad in Friday's Sakal

    So what’s the truth of the matter? While Sakal quotes Audit Bureau of Circulations numbers, there are no recent IRS numbers to support the publication’s numbers. ABC numbers may be quoted by publications, but they aren’t recognised as standard benchmarks (or ‘currency’) by media agencies and advertisers. Meanwhile, Lokmat’s claim is based on research work done by Hansa Research. Now, while this study has been commissioned by the Lokmat group and hence may not be considered credible aver independent industry observers, it may be remembered that Hansa Research bears a stamp of quality and was firm entrusted with the IRS for many years, until the unified readership survey contract was awarded to Nielsen in 2012.

    According to an industry observer, while Sakal has been facing some heat from competition in recent years, it is still recognised as the leader in the Pune market and attracts maximum advertising. “It should’ve just ignored the Lokmat claims rather than giving competition free publicity on the front-page.”  In fact a report on the issue in the Sakal group’s English daily SakalTimes notes: “For Sakal, there is no need to take a note of the efforts made by Lokmat to falsely claim highest circulation.”

    Rugwed Deshpande

    Said Rugwed Deshpande, Director of Setu Advertising, a Pune-based creative and media agency: “When it comes to numbers, Pune thinks emotionally. It’s always Data vs Emotions for decision-making. Sakal enjoys great brand loyalty and affection from readers where as Lokmat has been trying their best to make its own space. Sakal has been far more active with their offline events and people connect initiatives.” And what is the view from advertisers, we asked Deshpande. “As far as local advertisers are concerned, they don’t believe in numbers be it circulation or readership. Most of them rely on their past experiences and the response that these publications have been delivering.” So will the war of words between the Big Two have an impact? “”The current campaign war doesn’t make any difference to the traditional advertisers. Nationally, numbers are more reliable source of information hence the impact of these research numbers would be probably different. Authenticity of official sources will ignite a bigger debate. As a Punekar, we don’t enjoy this war and believe in substance and content. No.1 is someone who understands us and speaks our language.”

    Newspapers, especially in traditional cities like Pune, have an emotional connect with citizens so it’s Advantage Sakal in Pune for now. Lokmat’s  tactic of taking on the leader met with much success in Kolhapur in South West Maharashtra where it took on Pudhari, the leading daily in the city. While Pudhari continues to be #1, it Lokmat has established itself in public as the #2.

    Meanwhile, on Friday (today), Lokmat has frontpaged a short news item on being #1 on the back of the Hansa Research findings.  Sakal too has carried an ad mocking at Lokmat’s claim and declaring that it is the #1 as per ABC data (on Page 5).

  • The new company will focus on creating immersive VR content and communication

    Virtual Reality company “Digital Art VRe” unveiled

    By A Correspondent

     

    Setu Advertising and Digital Art have come together to form Digital Art VRe, a company focussed on creating customised, immersive virtual reality experiences.

     

    Based in Pune, both companies have complementing core competencies. While Digital Art specialises in 3D visualisation, realistic renderings with global illumination lighting systems and multimedia presentations, Setu Advertising is a 30 year old, full-service 360 degree brand communications and advertising agency.

     

    Rugwed Deshpande

    “We’re in the business of brand building and communication. And lifelike experiences are one of the most effective forms of communication. Virtual Reality is simply the means to offer that experience to people and to deliver uncluttered communication,” says Rugwed Deshpande, Director, Setu Advertising.

     

     

    Ajay Parge

    Ajay Parge, Managing Director, Digital Art, is very excited to work in the Virtual Reality Domain. “This is a medium where even the minutest details can make a big difference to the end product. The amount of perfection required is phenomenal, and that’s what makes it so challenging and interesting at the same time,” he says.

     

    As forerunners in the virtual reality scene in India, Deshpande and Parge attended the recent ‘Oculus Connect 2’, one of the biggest global events centered on virtual reality. Held in Hollywood from 23rd-25th September, ‘Oculus Connect 2′ is a platform where virtual reality thought leaders, innovators and creators come together, experts deliver keynote addresses and conduct workshops related to Game and Apps Design, Hardware, Product, Cinematic Virtual Realty and Virtual Reality Engineering.

     

    Commenting on being invited to the prestigious ‘Oculus Connect 2’ Deshpande said, “We were indeed excited and humbled to be a part of this mega event on virtual reality. It gave us a great platform to interact with global thought leaders and modern legends in the space of virtual reality. In fact we presented some of our own VR creations, one of which was that of Pune’s Shaniwarwada. Our overall effort falls in line with PM Narendra Modi’s vision of recreating museums and historic places, using virtual reality as a medium. Not only did our work garner much appreciation but one of our commercial VR projects, ‘K52’ done for a real estate client has now been featured on the official Oculus Share and AutoCAD websites. Obviously, we’re thrilled! In the second phase of implementation, we intend to work closely with the Government of India for education, entertainment and events. Prof. Mandar Rane, a senior faculty member from IIT Bombay has agreed to join us as a content adviser.”

     

    “Being at OC2 gave us an excellent opportunity to work with makers and experts of this technology and explore it in a much better manner. We are excited about future collaboration opportunities with the global developer community,” said Parge.