An array of innovative ideas, fascinating opinions and creative expressions poured out in the second edition of Pearl Academy's Design Carnival. The twoday celebration, which ended on Sunday in the beautiful Pink City of Jaipur, created an interactive space that engaged creative aspirants, intellectuals and budding designers from across the country.

The festival entailed a display of some ingenious projects from budding designers of Pearl Academy's School of Design as well as School of Fashion, Styling and Textiles. Final year graduates from the courses of interior design, interior design and styling, jewellery design and textile design showcased their final year project.

One of the students, Lisha Malhotra, who displayed Kalamkari craftwork said, "Being connected to your roots is as important as it is to grow with the changing world." She displayed a fusion of Kalamkari, Thermochromic and Glow Inks combined with interactive electronics. There were story books, cushions, headsets and toys. "This collection," she added, "is about educating children, making them sensitised with crafts and conserving the rich Indian heritage. It is also making them understand about Kalamkari, which imbibes in itself the root of all Indian hand-crafted arts as it is a collection of natural dyes, hand painting and motifs inspired by the nature and temples."

Another student, Reeti Shah, from the School of Fashion Styling and Textiles, showcased a varied range of furnishing products inspired by geometry. Her collection was titled Echo-loops of Symmetry. It was inspired by fractals, which are a never-ending pattern that iterates itself at different scales and angles and are identical. She used digital printing and block printing techniques. "In digital priniting, one can get intricate patterns and exact colors. Wide range of colors can be used and also it is faster," Reeti said.

Also, the jewellery projects of the students were picked up and sponsored by renowned jewellery brands such as Amrapali, Bluestone, PC Jewellers and Voylla. The projects impressed the industry representatives and other visitors.

Besides, the Academy also hosted two panel discussions titled The Conversation, with industry experts and professionals, including renowned fashion designer Manish Malhotra. He also inaugurated an incubation centre named Canvass for budding entrepreneurs during the carnival. Malhotra said, "I am amazed at the creativity and the abundance of talent that is displayed here at the Design Carnival in Jaipur. The crafts and exhibits that we have here are indeed refreshing and thought provoking. The Canvass, their incubation centre, is also a great step to boost entrepreneurship in the fashion industry."

Echoing similar sentiments, Prof Nandita Abraham, CEO of Pearl Academy, said, "Design is gaining a lot of recognition across the globe and we wanted to give insights about what happens in a design college through this carnival. We often bring in craftsmen and people from the industry for a fruitful discussion here with students. Design is not just an art. It is something that can also make a statement. It can communicate about various things such as racism, confidence, and women empowerment and so on."

She added, "Design helps in finding solutions and is used to communicate. Also, students asked a lot of questions to the panelists, which helped them gain lot of insights into the subject."

In addition, there were engaging activities, including residency workshops on Make and Learn Toys, Lime Jaali and Ply Split Braiding, coupled with innovative demonstrations such as Tangalia, Patwa, Meenakari, Blacksmithy and Jaipur Rugs.

The two-day gala event ended with an enthralling musical performance by Omar Farooq, who played Bhapang. This rare single-stringed percussion instrument is used as an accompaniment for vocal performances.