I had to develop an automobile concept, focusing on the exteriors. To me, the project had to be more of emotional exploration. Imagination and inspiration took priority over feasibility and production ability. For me, it was a step forward in discovering, evolving and incorporating ‘Indian Design’. So, I devised a formula for myself. The combination of ‘me, Renault and India’ would make my automotive outcome.

The initial phase started by defining myself - constant self introspection expressed through collages. More importantly, I started finding Indian inspirations. As India does not have a prominent automotive history, for inspiration I looked into Indian art, architecture, people, nature etc.

Improving sketching and perceptive skills was of primary concern. I simultaneously concentrated on improving them, almost intending to make sketching a language. I kept exploring proportions to understand their emotional value and how they convey feelings like luxurious, cheap, swift, beautiful, sturdy etc. The process that I adopted was more homogenous instead of having boundaries defining research, inspiration and conceptualisation. Designing started from day one and never ended. Going back and forth to refine my ideas, my direction and my inspirations became a norm.

I questioned myself at every bend of the project, trying to find the right direction and exploring something new, aiming to strike the right balance between meaningful radicalism and emotions, and at the same time to come up with something which in itself was very Indian and not an exercise in aping the west.