“Creativity and Self-expression are very important for any human being’- ArchanaSurana. ArchanaSurana is a high-performance entrepreneur who started her career with fashion designing, later embarking on an entrepreneurial ordeal by finding the Arch College of Design and Business in Jaipur. She has many awards and recognitions in her fame, the most prestigious of them received at the hands of our former President – DR. APJ Abdul Kalam. She is a CII council member for 10 years now, a former FICCI Ladies Organization Board Member, and is a mentor to many and a mentee to Fortune 50 Most Powerful CEO.

In an exclusive interview with us, Archana shares some amazing insights about her journey of becoming an entrepreneur and a mentoring coach.

Give Us A Brief Overview Of Arch College Of Design & Business

The idea of ARCH was conceptualized 22 years back, set up in three rooms in my own house. From that to a renowned institution, among the top design college in the country, Arch has experienced immense growth. Under the aegis of the ARCH Educational Society, Arch College was established in the year 2000 to impart industrially and globally relevant, specialized education in design and entrepreneurship. Pioneering a jewelry design course in the country, besides being the first to conduct an All-India Online Entrance Exam [AIEED] in 2010, currently, we are represented by over 8000 design professionals and entrepreneurs from all around the globe. ARCH has established collaborations with advanced foreign educational institutions as well as public and private organizations & forums in order to establish, maintain & improve upon globally recognized and accepted benchmarks in the delivery of quality education in Design.

Take Us Through Your Early Education And Priory Industry Experience Towards Becoming An Entrepreneur.

My entrepreneurial journey was the result of my inner unbound creativity and my hands-on approach, I was always inquisitive. the secret to all great undertakings is self-reliance and hard work. Being a hands-on person, very keen to learn, and passionately creative, I always had a way with patterns, colors, and designs from the beginning. My studies in a St Thomas School eventually became very rewarding in my career. Initially, with not much understanding, it was just the aesthetic aspect of design, which attracted me. I started making my own clothes, dyeing them and was well-appreciated for the same. I got the opportunity to teach in South Delhi Polytechnique college which was my alma mater and later in another institute at Jaipur. Starting my life as an educator, gave me the ability to share my learnings and experience and further gave me the competence to continue being an educator.

Being in Jaipur, there was so much creativity around me that I wanted to express through my designs. I started jewelry designing in 1997, exploring all the facets of it and interacting with the communities involved. I love my culture and my roots and I carry them with me, everywhere I go.

What Were The Initial Days Like And What Were Some Major Challenges That You Had To Overcome In The Early Days Of Founding And Running Arch?

I’ve been into alarums and excursions at the start of my career. The primary challenge was funding. We started from a meager amount and the global vision that I had, the fulfillment of which lacked the optimum number of resources required. The industry wasn’t at a blooming stage then and designs were mostly copy-pasted from international catalogs. So, it was difficult getting people together and making them understand the importance of design and all it had to offer. I later had a learning experience at NIFT in digital design and a different course that I took abroad. I eventually started networking with a lot of people my experience convinced them to believe in the vision that I had. I explored a lot, met with MSMEs, government officials, became a part of CII forums, and with that exposure to the industry, I became an entrepreneur and started ARCH.

“We need a pervasive education system that offers more creative choices at the school education level and further. We need the help of more policy-makers into this and i believe that creativity and self-expression is the most important arena that the youth needs to focus on”

Throw Some Light On The Various Courses That The Arch Institute Renders To Students? How Have These Courses Been Designed So As To Ensure That Every Student Is Industry-Ready And Theoretically Sound?

Currently, the institute OFFERS 4-year undergraduate courses and also a Master’s degree in design and entrepreneurship. At Arch, we believe that books are only purposed to validate and practical knowledge is what matters the most. All courses focus on employability, internationality, and integrated learning, applicable to the current developments in the industry of lifestyle and communications. Through participation in real-life community projects, research projects, competitions, and internships, the curriculum enables state of art, digital technology as well as grass-root experience and capacities of trained professionals and craftsmen.

In the first year, we make sure that the students explore through a lot of materials and technologies. In the second year, they find their area of interest. In the third year, they take up a lot of projects, locally and globally so that they are exposed to a lot of practical experience. And in the final year, they are all prepared for the industry and launch their own brand. As an entrepreneur, I always try to cultivate the entrepreneurial element in the students, right from the beginning. Arch has many projects under its belt like - metro uniform, UK India research initiative project, and a fashion show at Amer Fort. We recently did a big research colloquium involving 250 delegates from 50 countries also have launched 2 new courses - entrepreneurship and digital photography.

What Is Your Take On The Current State Of The Indian Higher Education System?

We need a pervasive education system that offers more creative choices at the school education level and further. We need the help of more policy-makers into this and I believe that creativity and self-expression is the most important arena that the youth needs to focus on.

Archana wants to develop educational pathways in design, inculcating design culture into all spheres of life, further working with different artisans and craftsmen, to explore and dive more into the field. She believes that there’s a larger purpose to life and each of us needs to set our own benchmark of excellence.

Archana Surana, Founder & Director, Arch College Of Design & Business

Her experience over the last 24 years in the delivery of design education has ensured that the ARCH imparts specialized and industrially relevant design education to prepare professionals and entrepreneurs for the fast changing world of Design and Business by imparting Undergraduate and Post Graduate Level programs with International and National Certification.