NID DAT 2020 Topper Interview: AIR 1, Krishna Gilda wants to be an entrepreneur

Krishna Gilda topped the NID 2020 exam with All India Rank (AIR) 1. Know about his NID preparation strategy, success mantra and a lot more. 

A student of College of Engineering, Pune, Krishna secured Rank 1 in the NID Entrance Exam 2020. He scored Rank 1 in Furniture and Interior Design and Rank 7 in Product Design in Open Category. His subject-wise marks are 68.32/100 in Product Design and 69.28/100 in Furniture and Interior Design.

He is currently pursuing Master’s in Industrial Design from National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, and wants to build his own enterprise in the Design field. He loves listening to podcasts, watching movies and reading books in his leisure time. His father looks after a hardware-cum-building material store in Latur, Maharashtra, and his mother is a homemaker.

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Shiksha spoke to Krishna where he shared NID Entrance Exam preparation strategy, important books and tips. Read the complete interview below.

Yes and no. After my Mains exam, I did not expect to be in the top ranks. However, after my interview and portfolio rounds, I was pretty much confident that I would make it to the top.

Besides applying to the NID, I had also applied to several foreign universities for PG in Design. Foreign universities require a Statement of Purpose (SOP) and a portfolio alongside your application. Looking back, I think the decision to make a portfolio and an SOP before the NID entrance was the best strategy that helped me prepare for the entrance exam. 

The process of building a portfolio relies heavily on self-reflection. This makes one a better storyteller, a better thinker and a better communicator. I think these are the skills that any design college looks for.

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Yes, I took coaching for the exam. Through coaching, you get to know your peers and also understand where you stand in the competition. It allows you to evaluate yourself on the skills you lack. In case of lack of self-discipline, coaching classes can help the students devote concentrated time to their studies.

However, the NID entrance exam is framed in such a way that no matter what coaching you attend, it is entirely on the student's calibre and motivation that they are able to crack the exam. Though coaching class will claim a share in their success, these do not contribute much.

Below are a few things that I followed:

• Solved previous years’ NID question papers

• Read books about the field of interest

• Identified my weak points and worked on them

• Watched good films

• Listened to good podcasts

However, I do not recommend any study plan. There is nothing right or wrong in Design. The only thing that matters is motivation.

The nature of the NID exam is such that it tests your awareness about your surrounding and life in general. So, there isn’t any particular book that will help you crack the exam.

However, reading newspapers helped me a lot. I used to read The Indian Express daily. In addition to this, I had also read a few books on Design to understand the field:

· Emotional Design by Don Norman

· Designerly Ways of Knowing by Nigel Cross

· Thinking Objects by Tim Parsons

· Universal Principles of Design by William Lidwell

· Product Design by Alex Milton

· Design by Karl Ulrich

· Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman

The Mains question paper has different sections — Creativity, General Knowledge, Sketching Skills and Design Aptitude. The weightage of these sections keeps on changing every year.

For me, there was not any preferred section for scoring well. However, the General Knowledge section is the easiest to answer, as it does not require much thinking. You do not want to lose marks on this low-hanging fruit.

Students often easily overestimate their skills. Being more pragmatic and critical about your work will help you stay on the ground.

Secondly, get your work reviewed only by people you trust and not by everyone you know. Also, do not hesitate to ask for help in case you find it difficult to figure anything.

Before you make a schedule for yourself, it is better to know and evaluate your skills. This helped me prioritise my time better. Solving past question papers helped me do that.

Initially, I was not very confident about my sketching skills. So, I dedicated at least two hours daily to sketching (for around three months). In addition to this, I used to read newspapers daily. I dedicated the rest of the time to my portfolio.

I found the sketching section most difficult. You need to be good at sketching to qualify for the exam. Be confident about what you are drawing.

Identifying your real strengths and weaknesses is the first step to deal with them. Once you identify those, it is only a matter of giving the right amount of time and attention to your weaknesses. Having said that, you will also have to smartly work to make your strengths play in your favour. I had good working experience in the industry, and I leveraged it in my interview.

I did appear for CEED, but I chose NID. Besides, I had also applied to a few foreign universities -- TU Delft, RISD and Parsons New School.

No, Design was not always my first preference. It was only after I started working in the industry after my graduation that a colleague introduced me to the field of Industrial Design. Though initially unaware, I researched more about the field only to find my growing interest in it. This made me reflect upon my life experiences -- family background, projects during graduation, industry experience and how I enjoyed working on products. All of this added up and provided a much greater inclination towards the field of Industrial Design.

· Read newspapers daily

· Read more about your chosen field of Design

· Sketch as much as you can

· Challenge yourself to think out of the box

· Be super critical about your work and never get satisfied with it

· Plan things and do not expect change in one day. Becoming good at something requires patience and perseverance.

Firstly, I want to gain some real-life experience in designing products in diverse fields. Secondly, I want to build my own enterprise in this field. I have this dream of employing Design to solve real-life issues that India faces.

Every passing project, every work that I do makes me realise that even if I find a solution, there is still a lot to it that needs to be answered. I think this nature of Design in which you have to consider various factors and speculate different future possibilities makes it a very interesting field for me. It is this quest to get close to a solution that would not only solve the problem, but also look beyond it that motivates me. I see myself still striving for this perfection even 25 years from now with a tinge of satisfaction.