Indian Design Is Still a Colony
80 years in, Indian brands are still deciding what "good design" looks like by standards they didn't create and never agreed to. If there's one day to question that habit, it's today.
The State Of Mind
The State of Mind is a not-so-serious, unfiltered, very real newsletter about building a design agency, jamming with Gen Zs, designing for SaaS, and Tech.
Subscribe:.rss.atom.json.md.m3u.pls
Live Last read · last published · next check
Latest episodes
Saves to your Listen queue, to pick up on another day or another device.
5 Things Clients Value in 2026
As execution becomes more freely available, clients are looking for something more instinctive.
"Empathy" in Design is the Floor, Not the Ceiling
We’ve spent years teaching designers to empathize. Aparna Vinod thinks we need to learn how to listen.
#65 - The Design Job Nobody's Hiring For Yet : Aparna Vinod
What happens when most design advice assumes an English-speaking, phone-fluent, low-stakes user and your actual users are none of those things?
Design Director ≠ Design Leader
The title hasn't changed, but the work it represents already has. Most organizations just haven't updated the job description to reflect it.
Invisible Brands Start With Invisible Thinking
Production got effortless and accountability disappeared. These two things happened at the same time, but we couldn’t trace this phenomenon correctly.
The Truth About “Made in India”
Ajaaz’s most common advice to aspiring founders who want to build a shoe brand is "don't do it". But why? And then what’s the X-factor about his brand ‘Ludic’?
Indian Money Apps Love False Alarms
Something is being built into the design of lending and BNPL (Buy Now, Pay Later) apps in India. Most of the teams building them have not noticed yet.
The Playbook for Remarkable Indian Consumer Brands
Most agencies start fun, then grow up into a beige one. But Studio Sorted, co-founded by Abhishek, refused to play into that stereotype. Let’s see how.
#64 - 65,000 pairs, Zero shortcuts - Designing a slow footwear-first brand in India : Ajaaz Rasheed
What does it take to build a footwear brand in India that competes globally, without taking the easy route through China?