IIAD Marks 10 Years with UNFOLD 2025

From Tarun Tahiliani to Ramola Bachchan, Industry Icons Celebrates The Groundbreaking Graduate Show

Recently, IIAD was honoured with the Excellence in Skill Development Education award by EducationWorld Magazine at the Higher Education Grand Jury Awards 2025–26. To add to this momentous year, the Indian Institute of Art & Design (IIAD) hosted the 7th edition of its annual Graduate Showcase, UNFOLD, on May 3rd and 4th, 2025, at its New Delhi campus. Like every year, the event drew a powerful lineup of industry leaders from Reliance Brands, Adobe, Landor, DLF, FDCI  

Leading industry veterans like Tarun Tahiliani, Ramola Bachchan and Sunil Sethi joined the two-day celebration that unveiled over a hundred final-year projects across Communication Design, Fashion Design, Interior Architecture & Design and Fashion Business Management. From immersive installations and spatial redesigns to branding campaigns and business ventures, the event offered a bold glimpse into the ideas shaping India’s next generation of creative professionals.

The event began with a lamp-lighting ceremony, officiated by IIAD officials namely Dr. Jitin Chadha (Founder & CEO) with Mr. Ajit Chadha (Chairman), Prof. Usha Nehru Patel (Director-Academics), Simrat Joshi (COO), Prof. Snehanshu Mukherjee (Course Leader, Interior Architecture and Design), Sakshi Jain (Course Leader, Communication Design), Dr. Sunita Gupta Konwar (Course Leader, Fashion Business Management) and Kishore Chakraborty (Course Leader, Foundation). 

 

The Communication Design department brought together leading creative minds to explore the evolving role of designers in an AI-driven world. Moderated by Sakshi Jain, the conversation featured Sudeep Chaudhuri (Adobe), Samar Jodha (Red Balloon), Amit Krishn Gulati (Incubis Consultants), Monica Khanna Gulati (SkyBLUE Design), Sonali Pal (23:23 Designs) and Som Sengupta (Zeppelin Design). The dialogue centered around the irreplaceable value of human creativity, the need for strong educational foundations and the importance of embracing uncertainty in career paths. From reflections on design’s empathy advantage to calls for entrepreneurial courage and personal voice, the panel affirmed that while AI may shift tools and workflows, the essence of design remains deeply human — rooted in observation, context and the courage to create.

Day one featured exhibitions from the Communication Design (CD) and Interior Architecture & Design (IAD) departments. Communication Design students presented final-year projects across animation, illustration, branding and packaging, UI/UX and publication design. Several of these projects had previously won awards at national and international platforms. The exhibitions were open to industry professionals, faculty, students and the larger design community.

A panel discussion was hosted by the Interior Architecture and Design department on Reduction by Design brought together leading voices from firms such as Team 3, Mold Design Studio, AVA Design, Resaiki and others. 

The session addressed the urgent need to design with restraint—shifting focus from aesthetic minimalism to purposeful reduction in materials, processes and consumption. Panelists explored how traditional craftsmanship, innovation in construction techniques and client education can together support a more sustainable and relevant design practice.

The second day featured a panel discussion titled "Launching Tomorrow: What The Industry Wants Today," facilitated by the Fashion Business Management department. The discussion explored what it takes to thrive in today’s fast-changing industry. Moderated by Abhishek Verma (Associate Professor, IIAD), the session featured Ramola Bachchan (Serial Entrepreneur and Socialite, First Resort, Accidental Chef, Runway Bridal, Runway Rising, Housefull), Reema Malhotra (GM, Pee Empro Exports), Ritu Nakra (GM, Landor), Yogeshwar Sharma (Chief of Business Development, DLF) and Rohit Singh (Head of Sourcing & Design, Reliance Brands Ltd). 

The panelists spoke about their journeys, industry shifts and the skills they value in young professionals today. From creative thinking and emotional intelligence to business acumen and adaptability, the conversation stressed the need for a well-rounded approach. AI was seen as a useful tool—but one that cannot replace human insight, experience, and originality.

 

Addressing students on overcoming self-doubt and taking risks, Ramola Bachchan advised,“It’s important to evolve with time and stay current. You have to be brave enough to take risks, adapt to change and build organically — that’s how you create relevance in today’s world.”

The evening concluded with a second fashion show, featuring 24 graduating collections that debuted earlier in the day.  From surrealist distortions and mythological metaphors to regenerative craft and radical form reimaginings, the Fashion Showcase 2025 transformed the runway into a space of provocation, purpose, and poetic disruption. Muskan Mittal’s Worn Beliefs challenged beauty ideals through surreal, exaggerated forms, while Yashashvi Paliwal’s Echoes in Batik revived traditional craft with sustainable intent. Sejal Rajawat’s Harmonious Regeneration reimagined denim through the Ubuntu philosophy, highlighting community, reuse, and transformation.

Aafreen Ahmed’s Kitsune No Hikari wove Japanese folklore into layered silhouettes symbolizing personal evolution, and Janavi Mehta’s Form Unformed turned corsetry into a radical expression of identity and fluid femininity. Vanshika Jain’s Mind the Angle disrupted structure through playful Cubist deconstructions. Together, these collections made bold, thoughtful, and boundary-pushing statements—turning the spotlight on sustainability, transformation, identity, and collective consciousness. With fashion icons like Tarun Tahiliani and Sunil Sethi in attendance, the show stood as an extraordinary culmination of vision and voice—where young designers made the ramp a platform for stories that deserve to be worn, seen and remembered.

While the afternoon show was attended by celebrated designer Tarun Tahiliani, the evening brought industry stalwart Sunil Sethi, Chairman of the Fashion Design Council of India, to the front row. Speaking to the students, Indian Tarun Tahiliani remarked, “I told Jitin I’m envious of the students here—because back in my time, there was no design school to go to. I urge every student to be creative, mad and crazy—but always seek technique and never forget your roots. We’re a very cool country that was colonised to rebel—find your own definition of who you are.”

From textile explorations to concept-driven silhouettes, each collection reflected a distinct designer voice—merging craft, narrative, and innovation. UnFOLD 2025 offered a compelling glimpse into the evolving voice of India’s next generation of creative professionals—bold, conscious and industry-ready.